Climate Change Flashcards
Carbon dioxide (human source)
Burning fossil fuels (coal, gasoline, natural gas)
- energy, transportation, industry
Deforestation
Methane (human source)
Agricultural activities (rice farming, cattle ranching etc.)
Decay of organic materials in landfills and sewage treatment plants
Mining and gas extraction
Burning forests
Nitrous oxide (human source)
Management of livestock feed and waste
Nitrogen fertilizer
Industrial processes
Fossil fuel use
Chlorofluorocarbons
Refrigeration
Anthropogenic greenhouse effect
INCREASE in energy trapped by the atmosphere due to greenhouse gases from human activities
Weather
Atmospheric conditions including temperature, precipitation, wind and humidity in a particular location over a short period of time such as a day or a week
Climate
The average of the weather patterns in a region over a long period of time
Climate zone
A region identified by its specific temperature, precipitation and plant communities
Ecoregions
New climate zones, which focus on the energy of the region (landforms, soil, animals, plant and climate)
What does earth’s climate system include?
Air, land, water and ice
What are all living things powered by?
The sun
All energy comes from the sun in the form of radiation
When radiation comes into contact with matter…
Energy can either be absorbed, transmitted or reflected by a particle
how much energy is reflected?
30%
how much energy is absorbed?
70%
carbon dioxide (natural source)
volcanic eruptions
the burning of organic matter
cellular respiration from plants and animals
water vapour (natural source)
evaporation
transpiration
methane (natural source)
biological processes (plant decomposition in swamps and animal digestion)
ozone (natural source)
exists naturally in the stratosphere
acts as a greenhouse gas in the troposphere
nitrous oxide (natural source)
reactions of bacteria in soil and water
carbon sink
a reservoir that absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and stores it in another form
examples of carbon sink
ocean
trees
feedback loop
a process is which the result acts to influence the original process
heat sink
a reservoir that absorbs and stored thermal energy like an ocean
most important greenhouse gases
water vapour
carbon dioxide
what proxy record shows the longest record
ice cores
importance of albedo
helps determine temperature
if temperature decreases - more ice formed - more albedo - cooler
if temperature increase - less ice - less albedo - warmer
effects of climate change
rising temperatures, rising sea levels (melting ice - thermal expansion) severe weather (more intense heatwaves and hurricanes etc.) changes in precipitation patterns change in ecosystems (plants flowering earlier, animals mating earlier)
industrial revolution impact on climate change
technological advancement (started late 1700s) development of steam powered ships, railways, electrical power generation and the internal combustion engine
albedo effect
positive feedback loop in which an increase in earth’s temperature causes ice to melt, so more radiation is absorbed by earth’s surface, leading to further increase in temperature
