FEEDBACKS AND SCENARIOS

Question 1

What are feedbacks?

Answer 1

Feedbacks are processed that act to either reduce or increase the effects of climate forcings

Question 2

What are tipping points?

Answer 2

Tipping points are the critical points at which the state of a system is altered (Lenton, 2008)

Question 3

What are predictions?

Answer 3

Predictions are statements that something will happen based on conditions and assumptions

Question 4

What are scenarios?

Answer 4

Scenarios are plausible descriptions based on what ifs’

Question 5

How are scenarios created? PISC

Answer 5

Incremental arbitrary changes
Past climates
Spatial analogues
Climate models

Question 6

What is the biome removal hypothesis?

Answer 6

A 2017 study by BALA

If you removal boreal forests, albedo increases and you get cooling

If you remove tropical forests, evapotranspiration is limited and you get warming

Question 7

What is the respiration hypothesis?

Answer 7

A hypothesis by Lloyd, 1994

If you have higher temperatures, you have more respiration, releasing more carbon and increasing temperatures

Question 8

What are the 2 ice hypothesis?

Answer 8

If you melt permafrost, more carbon is released causing more heating

If ice sheets melt, albedo is reduced and more heat is absorbed, causing more heating

Question 9

How are climate models evaluated?

Answer 9

Testing against observations

Reliability metrics

Question 10

What is the SRES IPCC report of 2000?

Answer 10

Special report on emission scenarios

Provides a family of 4 scenarios to assess climate change

Now uses RCP as they are more consistent