Deck 3/4

Question 1

tools to assess climate change

Answer 1

IPCC reports, GCMs, and climate change scenarios

Question 2

Does the IPCC conduct research

Answer 2

no, they just compile literature and research into their reports

Question 3

does the IPCC monitor climate change

Answer 3

no, just a systematic review of all relevant published literature

Question 4

which IPCC report is the most recent

Answer 4

AR6

Question 5

reports are split into how many ____

Answer 5

3 working groups

Question 6

what are the three working groups

Answer 6

WG1 - climate science
WG2 - Mitigation
WG3 - Adaptation

Question 7

representative concentration pathways are?

Answer 7

4 GHG concentration trajectories (not emissions) adopted by the IPCC in AR5

Question 8

emission scenarios are found where?

Answer 8

AR4 special report, they are future socioeconomic pathways and their predicted CO2 emission increase

Question 9

RCP 2.6 is ?

Answer 9

the most environmentally friendly
- meant to keep global temp rise below 2 degrees by 2100
- strict and very big cuts to all types of emissions

Question 10

RCP 4.5 is ?

Answer 10

the middle scenario
- rise in temp by 2-3 degrees by 2100 and mean sea level rise 35% higher than RCP 2.6
- CO2 peak in 2040, then declines to half of 2050 levels by 2100
- many plants and animals unable to adapt

Question 11

RCP 8.5 is the?

Answer 11

worst case scenario
- co2 emissions continue to rise
- 3+ degree warming
- unlikely but we don’t understand feedbacks and stuff well enough yet

Question 12

GCM

Answer 12

General circulation model OR Global climate model

Question 13

climate models are system of equations based on ____, ____, and ____

Answer 13

physics, fluid motion, chemistry

Question 14

models must represent physical interactions between …

Answer 14

the atmosphere, oceans, land surfaces, sea ice

Question 15

what do GCMs simulate

Answer 15

large scale physical processes fundamental to changing atmospheric responses at the global scale

not detailed physical processes

Question 16

can GCMs be applied to small areas

Answer 16

yes, through downscaling the global ones

Question 17

why are there so many different models

Answer 17

• they’ve been constantly improved and adjusted
• fisrt models were crude and simple, now they can model glaciers, dams, human management etc

Question 18

how do you choose the right model

Answer 18

there is no right model, so use as many as possible and get a large range of results and possibilities for the future

Question 19

in what cases will you have to plan for a range of worst to best case scenarios

Answer 19

in regions with high ranging results

Question 20

what do models do for stakeholders

Answer 20

turn raw data they dont care about or understand, into understandable and applicable predictions and scenarios