Climate, Humans And Climate Flashcards
Four main climate categories, their characteristics
A-moist tropical
B- arid and semiarid (dry)
C- humid temperate- moderate, moderate changes between summer and winter
D-humid micro thermal (severe winters)
Most common climate category on earth
Category B,. Arid and semiarid
Difference between climate and weather
Climate is long term aggregate of weather conditions at a location
Weather is short term condition of the atmosphere
El Niño
The name given to the periodic warming of the ocean that occurs in the central and eastern Pacific. A major El Niño episode can cause extreme weather in many parts of the world
La Niña
The opposite of El Niño. An episode of strong Tradewinds and unusually low sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific
Local air pollution
Many sources - dry cleaners, plastics, local businesses and homes, vehicle emissions, childhood asthma linked to plastics
US clean air laws of 70s greatly helped
Urban heat islands
Cities tend to have higher average temperatures than rural areas in comparable locations
People, houses, factories, vehicles give off waste heat. Concrete, asphalt hold heat. Less evaporation through vegetation (of operation is a cooling process)
Sources of pollution and chemicals produced
Primary pollutants – chemicals released directly into air
Secondary pollutants – chemicals formed when primary pollutants chemically react after being released
Primary examples : carbon monoxide(transportation), Sulfur oxides (sulfur containing coal), nitrogen oxides ( transportation) , particulates – soot (what shows on snow piles)
Ozone hole
Ozone (O3) absorbs high-energy short wavelength ultraviolet radiation that can cause skin cancer cataracts and death
Ozone hole started over Antarctica due to extreme cold there, vortex formed
Montreal protocal
International agreement in Canada that phase out the manufacture of CFC products such as Freon. To reduce ozone hole. The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (a protocol to the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer) is an international treaty designed to protect the ozone layer by phasing out the production of numerous substances that are responsible for ozone depletion
Greenhouse effect and global warming
Occurs naturally keep the earth warm at night. Suns energy reaches earth, relatively shortwave radiation (visible ) can penetrate atmosphere , reflected back in longer (infrared) rays that are absorbed and trapped by greenhouse gases in the troposphere, thereby warming the atmosphere
Greenhouse gases: carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor
Changes observed around planet
Temperature going up over time, more CO2 in atmosphere
