Introdunction to Climate Science Flashcards
Consists of the short-term (minutes to months) changes in the atmosphere.
Weather
The average weather for a particular region and time period, usually taken over 30-years
Climate
Temperature, humidity, precipitation, cloudiness, brightness, visibility, wind, and atmospheric pressure determine what the ______ is like at a given time and location.
weather
Averages of precipitation, temperature, humidity, sunshine, wind velocity, phenomena such as fog, frost, and hail storms, and other measures of the weather that occur over a long period in a particular place.
climate
it is what you get
weather
it is what you expect
climate
condition of the atmosphere over a short period of time
weather
how the atmosphere behaves over a long period of time and space
climate
can change within minutes or hours
weather
average regional weather pattern over decades
climate
Measure of the distance you are located from the equator.
latitude
Locations at lower latitudes receive ______ and ______than locations near the poles
stronger and more direct sunlight
main driving force in the atmosphere
energy input from the sun
The earth’s axis of rotation is tilted about _____ degrees compared to the plane of the earth’s orbit around the sun.
23.5
The earth’s _____ is responsible for the seasons we experience.
tilt
24 hours daylight
arctic circle
13.5 hours daylight
tropic of cancer
12 hours daylight
equator
10.5 hours of daylight
tropic of capricorn
0 hours of daylight
antarctic circle
6 months of day
polar day
6 months of night
polar night
june 21, 2024
summer solstice
december 21
winter solstice
24 hours of darkness
arctic circle
13.5 hours of darkess
tropic of cancer
12 hours of darkness
equator
10.5 hours of darkness
tropic of capricorn
0 hours of darkness
antarctic circle
Types of Solar Eclipse
Total Solar eclipse, Annual Solar Eclipse, Partial Solar Eclipse, Hybrid Solar Eclipse
After April 8, 2024 total solar eclipse, the next total solar eclipse will be on _____
Aug. 23, 2044
The _____ of the Earth varies as one moves upward from the surface of the Earth.
temperature
Region where nearly all water vapor exists and essentially all weather occurs.
troposphere
On the average, the temperature decreases with height in the troposphere at the rate of approximately _____ of altitude.
6.5°C per 1000m
Temperature decreases with altitude since troposphere’s gases absorb _______ of the incoming solar radiation.
very little
Heating is most effective near the ground.
troposphere
Region above the troposphere and a region where temperatures actually increase with increasing height.
stratosphere
Temperature remains isothermal until about 20 km.
stratosphere
directly warmed by the Sun unlike the troposphere.
stratosphere
It has higher concentration of ozone, an effective absorber of solar ultraviolet radiation.
stratosphere
Approximately _____% of the ozone in the atmosphere resides in the stratosphere
90%
Ozone concentration in the this region is about 10 parts per million by volume (ppmv) as compared to approximately 0.04 ppmv in the troposphere.
stratosphere
Air is very thin at this height and temperature decreases with increasing height.
mesosphere
The thin air and small amounts of ozone prevent the air from warming much.
mesosphere
The region of the atmosphere where the most energetic solar energy is absorbed.
thermosphere
Ultraviolet radiation, visible light, and high-energy gamma radiation are all absorbed by the ______, which causes the few particles present to heat up considerably.
thermosphere
Amount of water in the air relative to the saturation amount the air can hold at a given temperature multiplied by 100.
relative humidity
A higher value of RH means that the atmosphere is ______, a lower value means the atmosphere is _____.
nearing saturation; far from saturation
In the atmosphere, the molecules in the air apply pressure to everything on earth, including us.
air pressure
______ in the atmosphere causes the air to compress and sink, leading to clear skies and calm conditions.
High pressure
Measures the ‘heaviness’ of an object or how closely ‘packed’ the substance is
density
Measure of number of air molecules in a given area.
density
Higher the number of molecules, ______the air is.
denser
the transfer of heat through a solid, liquid or gas by direct contact.
conduction
transfer of heat from a warmer region to a cooler one by moving warm liquid or gas from the heated area to the unheated area.
convection
transfer of energy through air and space by light waves (visible, ultraviolet and infrared waves).
radiation
Visible light
Contains higher amounts of energy
E.g. Sun’s radiation
shortwavve radiation
Infrared light
Contains smaller amounts of energy
E.g. Earth’s radiation
longwave radiation
amount of energy that is reflected by a surface is determined by the reflectivity of that surface
albedo
Something that appears white reflects most of the light that hits it and has a _____
high albedo
something that looks dark absorbs most of the light that hits it, indicating a ______
low albedo
process of evaporating water from leaves through plant transpiration during photosynthesis.
evapotranspiration
Responsible for 15% of the atmosphere’s water vapor.
evapotranspiration
as _____ increases, the rate of evapotranspiration increases.
temperature
If the air around the plant is too humid, the transpiration and evaporation rates drop.
humidity
If the air is moving, the rate of evaporation will increase.
wind speed
if the soil is dry and there is no standing water, there will be no evaporation.
water availability
For areas where the ground is covered by vegetation, the rate of transpiration is considerably higher than the rate of evaporation from the soil.
soil type
Describes how the incoming energy from the sun is used and returned to space.
EARTH’S ENERGY BALANCE
If incoming and outgoing energy are in balance, the earth’s temperature remains ____
constant
The ______ drives the weather and life on earth.
energy balance
the atmosphere contains:
Gases (permanent and variable)
Water droplets (clouds and precipitation)
Microscopic solid particles (aerosols)
permanent gases
nitrogen, oxygen, argon
variable gases
water vapor
trace gases
carbon dioxide, methane, ozone, CFCs
form a constant proportion of the atmosphere, and have long residence times (thousands to millions of years).
permanent gases
vary in atmospheric concentration in both time and space.
variable gases
Extremely important variable gas with short residence time (~10 years).
water vapor
Invisible gaseous phase of water.
water vapor
Atmospheric concentration highest near _________ in tropics (~4%).
ocean surface
Atmospheric concentration lowest in _____ and at ______ (near 0%).
deserts; high altitudes
An important greenhouse gas with concentration of 0.0386% (386ppm) and residence time of 150 years.
carbon dioxide
source and sinks of carbon dioxide
sources:
1. plant and animal respiration
2. volcanoes
3. organic decay
4. combustion
sinks:
1. photosynthesis (plants)
2. Oceans
beneficial and harmful variable gas.
ozone
Ozone concentrations in the _____ (~10-30 miles above sea level) are relatively high (15 ppm), occurs from natural chemical reactions (absorbs UV radiation).
stratosphere
Ozone concentration near ______ is usually near zero, but can increase to 0.15 ppm through chemical reactions in polluted air (irritant).
earth’s surface
variable gas with residence time of ~10 years that has high potential for greenhouse warming
methane
sources and sinks of methane
sources:
1. rice cultivation, wetlands
2. mining
3. biomass burning
4. fossil fuel extraction
5. animal digestion
sinks:
1. atmospheric chemical reactions
Small solid particles
aerosols
typical concentration of aerosols
17,000/in^3
typical life span of aerosols
days to weeks
Mostly from natural sources.
aerosols
primary sinks of aerosols
dry and wet deposition
Act as cloud condensation nuclei
aerosols
Horizontal movement of air from an area of an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure.
wind
All winds are caused by differences in air pressure
wind
Most differences in air pressure are due to _______ in the atmosphere.
unequal heating
______ dense air sinks and has higher air pressure.
Cool
_____ less dense air rises and has lower pressure.
Warm
As the ____ air sinks, it creates areas of high pressure around the poles. This cold polar air then flows toward the equator.
cold
Pressure belts are found every ____.
30°
_____ are separated by pressure belts, bands of high and low pressure.
Convection cells
Caused by global convection currents.
global winds
blow steadily from specific directions over great distances.
global winds
The high pressure cool air at the poles tries to fill in the low pressure areas at the high equator.
global winds
Wind belts that extend from the poles to 60° latitude.
polar easterlies
Formed from cold sinking air moving from the poles creating cold temperatures.
polar easterlies
Wind belts found between 30°and 60° latitude.
westerlies
Flow towards the poles from west to east carrying moist air over the United States.
westerlies
Wind that blow from 30°almost to the equator.
trade winds
Called the _____ because of their uses by early sailors.
trade winds
Located along the equator where no winds blow because the warm raising air creates and area of low pressure.
doldrums
Located 5° N and S of equator.
doldrums
Located 30° N and S latitude.
horse latitude
creates dry environments and mostly deserts like the Sahara Desert, Atacama Desert, Kalahari Desert, and the Australian Desert.
horse latitude
both are ocean areas characterized by weak or nonexistent airflow for a prolonged period of time.
doldrums and horse latitudes
air existing in doldrums is ______, while horse latitudes’ air is ____
moist, dry
can cause extreme weather like squalls, thunderstorms, and hurricanes.
doldrums
cause the formation of deserts and other hot and dry areas.
horse latitudes
result of scenery such as mountains, vegetation, water bodies, and so on.
local winds
usually change very often, and the weather forecast people talk about this kind on the TV every day.
local winds
cover very short distances.
local winds
warm air over the land will rise throughout the day, causing low pressure at the surface.
sea breeze
The air over the ocean is now warmer than the air over the land.
land breeze
The air on the land is warmer than air over ocean.
sea breeze
land loses heat quickly after the sun goes down and the air above it cools too.
land breeze
valley floor warms during the day, warm air rises up the slopes of surrounding mountains and hills to create a _____
valley breeze (warm)
At night, denser cool air slides down the slopes to settle in the valley, producing a ______
mountain breeze (cold)
Happens as a result of earth’s rotation, causes moving particles such as air and water to be deflected to the right in the northern hemisphere and to the left in the southern hemisphere
coriolis effect
The Climate of the Philippines is ___
tropical and maritime
two pronounced seasons: dry from November to April, wet during rest of the year
Type I
No dry season with a very pronounced rainfall from November to April and wet during rest of the year
Type II
seasons are not very pronounced; relatively dry from november to april, wet during rest of the year
Type III
rainfall is more or less evenly distributed through the year
Type IV
