Cryosphere Flashcards
An ice sheet is an ice mass with an area larger than or equal to
5 x10^4 km2
Has sea ice in the arctic increased or decreased in the past 30 years
Decreased
Clean glacier ice has an albedo of
34-51%
The zone on a glacier where mass balance is positive is called the…
The accumulation zone
How long ago was the ‘little ice age’
350 years ago
What does the milankovitch cycle describe
Orbital changes of the earth through time
During the last glacial maximum what formed over North America
An ice sheet
Does visible light have a shorter wavelength than infrared light
Yes
How do anthropogenic aerosols influence our climate
Scatter light
Increase cloud lifetime
Increasing cloud brightness
In the northern hemisphere divert to the ..
Right
Southern Hemisphere divert to the …
Left
Winds blowing from east to west along the equator will cause …
Upwelling
What does ENSO stand for
El Niño and the Southern Oscillation
The specific heat capacity of a substance is a measure of
How much it’s temperature increases for the addition of a given amount of energy
What is the density of ice
0.9167 g/cm3
What month does sea ice around Antarctica reach it’s maximum
September
The equilibrium line on a glacier will rise if
Temperature rises and precipitation remains constant
Name 3 meltwater pathways
Supraglacial
Englacial
Subglacial
Marine ice sheet margins are more unstable if they are positioned in which way
Reverse slope and bed below sea level
Which type of ice form doesn’t add to sea level
Ice shelves
