Climate Change

Question 1

What is climate change?

Answer 1

Climate change is the long term change in climate patterns. It is not just the temperatures that are changing; the amount of rainfall is also changing leading to droughts, floods and changes in wind speeds are leading to stronger storms. Different Regions of the world are being affected in different ways.

Question 2

What is global warming?

Answer 2

Global warming is the recent warming of the atmosphere by neatly 1°C in the last 100 years because of human causes.

Question 3

What do temperature records show us?

Answer 3

Temperature records show us that the earths temperatures have fluctuated throughout its history

Question 4

What is known as the rate of change?

Answer 4

In the last 100 years or so, the worlds temperatures have continued to increase. The difference today is knows as the ‘rate of change’ because the climate is changing very quickly.

Question 5

What different ways can we measure what the climate has been like in the past?

Answer 5

Ice cores and tree rings

Question 6

How can we use ice cores to measure what the climate was like in the past?

Answer 6

The bubbles in ice cores are preserved for thousands of years and these represent the atmosphere at the time of freezing. Scientists look at the composition (how it’s made up) of air to determine what the temperature was.

Question 7

How are tree rings used to measure what the temperature was like in the past?

Answer 7

Trees grow one ring every year. A wide ring shows it was a warm year whereas a narrow ring shows it was a cold year. Tree rings can tell us what the climate was like hundreds of years ago.

Question 8

What different ways that can be used to measure how the climate is changing today?

Answer 8

Glaciers melting
Arctic sea ice
Air and sea temperatures
Recording changes in biodiversity

Question 9

How can we use the arctic sea ice to measure how the climate is changing?

Answer 9

We keep an annual record of the extent of arctic sea ice and if it changes, we know there is a change in the climate. The amount of arctic sea ice has halved over three decades indicating warmer temperatures.

Question 10

How do air and sea temperatures help measure the change in climate change?

Answer 10

We measure sea and air temperatures to keep a record of it.

We can see if they change and if they have, then we know there has been a change in our average temperature.

Question 11

How can recording changes in biodiversity tell us how the climate is changing?

Answer 11

If climate conditions are changing, plants and animals move, adapt or they die. Recognising these changes in biodiversity tell us how the climate is changing.

Question 12

What gases are earth’s atmosphere composed of?

Answer 12

Earths atmosphere is composed of nitrogen, oxygen and argon. Greenhouse gases make up a tiny fraction of our atmosphere.

Question 13

What is the greenhouse effect?

Answer 13

The greenhouse effect is when the earth becomes warmer due to natural Greenhouse gases trapping heat in the atmosphere.

Question 14

What is the enhanced greenhouse effect?

Answer 14

The enhanced greenhouse effect is the warming of the atmosphere due to the increased concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere due to human activity.

Question 15

What are physical causes of climate change?

Answer 15

Changes in solar radiation
Volcanic eruptions 
Changes to earth’s orbit
Changes to ocean currents
Permafrost

Question 16

How do changes to the earths orbit cause climate change?

Answer 16

The earth orbits the sun (once a year) but doesn’t keep to the same route. Over thousands of years, earths orbit stretches further from the sun than at other times. So, periods of time, when the earth is further away from the sun should be cooler. The earth also changes its tilt and wobble of its axis, this affects temperatures.

Question 17

How does permafrost cause climate change?

Answer 17

Permafrost is ground (rock or soil) that has been frozen for over two years. However, as temperatures are increasing in the Arctic Tundra, the permafrost is melting and it is happening at a quicker rate than ever before. Permafrost contains carbon and methane so when it melts, it releases the gases into the atmosphere enhancing the greenhouse effect.

Question 18

How has burning fossil fuels lead to an increase in greenhouse gases in our atmosphere?

Answer 18

Since the industrial revolution, we have been burning fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas and oil to power factories, make electricity, heat our homes and travel. They contain carbon so when they are burned they release carbon dioxide

Question 19

How has using more motor vehicles increased greenhouse gases in our atmosphere?

Answer 19

Motor vehicles burn petrol which is a fossil fuel. There are more motor vehicles in the world now than ever before.

Question 20

How does deforestation cause an increase in greenhouse gases?

Answer 20

Trees take in carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and and release oxygen into the atmosphere. Growing populations create a greater demand for land to be used for agriculture, building roads and timber to be used for construction. As a result, deforestation means there are fewer trees to absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen into the atmosphere. We are cutting down 13 million hectares of forest a year which is equivalent to 26 million football pitches.

Also, in some areas, forests are cleared by burning trees, which releases the carbon stored in the trees as carbon dioxide.

Question 21

How does more mask fields increase the amount of methane in the atmosphere?

Answer 21

The bacteria in the water clogged soil of padi fields release methane into the atmosphere.

Question 22

How do landfill sites cause climate change?

Answer 22

Landfill sites are where household waste is buried. Due to the increased use of single-use plastic is increasing, more waste is sent to landfill sites. When waste breaks down, over a long period of time, it releases methane and carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

Question 23

How do fertilisers increase the amount of nitrous oxides in the atmosphere?

Answer 23

Fertilisers are used to help grow more food, but this can also lead to increasing amounts of nitrous oxides (greenhouse gases) in the at atmosphere.

Question 24

What are local effects of climate change?

Answer 24

More rain and flooding
More droughts
Warmer temperatures and heatwaves
Loss of biodiversity

Question 25

How does more rainfall and flooding affect climate change?

Answer 25

A warmer atmosphere can cause heavy, intense rainfall. This increases the risk of flooding and can impact homes and businesses in the future.
More regular and intense rain will cause hillslopes to become unstable and water logged. This can trigger landslides. When these happens near roads and railways it can put peoples lives at risk.

Question 26

How do does climate change affects droughts?

Answer 26

Some areas will be drier which will cause water shortages especially in SE England, resulting in hose pipe bans. Increased periods of drought cause the drying of soil and vegetation. This increases the chance of wildfires and causes them to spread more rapidly.

Question 27

How do warmer temperatures and heatwaves affect local communities?

Answer 27

Warmer temperatures will boost the productivity of Scotlands farms and allow new plant species to be grow here. This will reduce our reliance on imports from abroad. It also encourages people to spend time outdoors being active so they will be healthier. However, it can also increase health problems and skin cancers.

Question 28

How does climate change affect the loss of biodiversity?

Answer 28

The climate of different habitats (e.g marshlands and mountains) will change, affecting the animals and plants that live there. Animals such as the Ptarmigan, which live on the highest mountains of Scotland, cannot move to higher ground so will struggle to live in Scotland and May go extinct.

Question 29

How does roses rainfall affect the globe?

Answer 29

Climate change has already affected the amount of rainfall in areas such as the sahel region (just below the Sahara desert) in Africa and SE Australia.
This will lead to water shortages and more frequent droughts in countries like Burkina Faso which can lead to famine and more people starving to death.
Deserts will also spread (desertification) e.g the Sahara is already spreading south. There will be water shortages in places such as the Middle East, with the danger of water wars breaking out as water becomes more and more scarce.
The Amazon rainforest is receiving less rainfall than usual. This could result in 40% of it turning into a drier savannah like landscape which could result in a loss of biodiversity.