Geography Paper 1 Section A - Climate Change

Question 1

What happened during the Quaternary Period?

Answer 1

-Geological time that started 2.6 million years ago and extends to the present
-There have been many fluctuations between colder glacial/warmer inter glacial periods.

Question 2

What has happened to our temperature over the last few hundred years?

Answer 2

-Over the last few hundred years, our climate has been warming rapidly.
-Average temps rose by .85* since 1880, majority since 1970s

Question 3

What evidence is there for climate change?

Answer 3

-Instrumental temp record(measuring of air and sea temps using thermometers since the late1800s
-Global sea level risen around 20cm since 1800s because higher temps have caused glaciers and ice sheets to melt and this freshwater flows into the sea
-Tree rings: the ring widths can be used to estimate past temperature or precipitation over the lifetime of the tree.