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REN R 105 > Lecture #7 (Climate Change) > Flashcards

Lecture #7 (Climate Change) Flashcards

1
Q

What is climate based on?

A

Meteorological variables such as temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, and precipitation

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2
Q

How is climate different from weather?

A

Climate is the long-term average of weather for a place (usually over 30 years) and weather is a short-term (days to weeks) patterns in meteorological variables

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3
Q

How long is climate typically averaged overed?

A

30 years

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4
Q

The _____ of a location is affected by latitude, attitude, terrain, land use, & nearby water bodies and currents

A

climate

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5
Q

What is paleoclimatology?

A

The study of ancient climates often inferred through proxies (tree rings, ice cores).

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6
Q

What is the purpose of a Stevenson screen?

A

To shield thermometers from precipitation and from direct radiation from outside sources while allowing air to circulate freely round them

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7
Q

Climate variables are summarized as either ____(1), _____ (4), or _____ values (12) per variable.

A

annual; seasonal; monthly

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8
Q

What are derived climate variables?

A

When different climate variables are used to derive a new variable that gets combined in certain ways (ex. indices of moisture availability)

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9
Q

What are Bioclimatic variables?

A

Variables that include both the most relevant annual, seasonal variables, and a set of derived (ex. moisture availability and continentality)

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10
Q

What does MWMT and MCMT stand for?

A

Mean Warmest Month Temperature; Mean Coldest Month Temperature

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11
Q

Climatic Moisture Index (CMI) correlates with ___________, which itself is complicated to calculate.

A

evapotranspiration

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12
Q

Outside of equatorial areas weather patterns are driven mostly by what?

A

Ocean currents (they act like conveyer belts)

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13
Q

How does ocean currents drive/push ocean currents?

A

Transport warm water (heat) & moisture from the equator towards the poles & cold water from the poles towards the tropics

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14
Q

Without ocean currents what would happen to temperatures?

A

They would be even more extreme

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15
Q

_____ store solar radiation, distribute heat & moisture around the globe & drive weather systems

A

Oceans

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16
Q

What is the temperature range of Oceans?

A

-2C to 30C

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17
Q

According to the Koppen Climate Classification, what are tropical (megathermal) climates?

A

Climates that have constant warm temperatures (lowest monthly temp is >18C)

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18
Q

According to the Koppen Climate Classification, what are dry (arid) climates?

A

Climates that have low precipitation (annual precipitation <50% of evaporation-related threshold)

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19
Q

According to the Koppen Climate Classification, what are Continental (microthermal) climates?

A

Climates that have hot summers & cold winters (often interior of a continent)

20
Q

According to the Koppen Climate Classification, what are Polar or Alpine climates?

A

Climates that have consistently cold temperatures throughout the year (avg. temp. of warmest month <10C)

21
Q

What two factors does the Koppen climate classification use?

A

Temperature & Precipitation

22
Q

What kind of climate does Edmonton have?

A

Continental climate without a dry season & warm summers (Dfb)
D: continental
f: without dry season
b: warm summer

23
Q

What are Hardiness Zones?

A

A geographic area that encompasses a range of climatic conditions relevant to a plant’s growth and survival

24
Q

Using Canada’s plant hardiness zone system, what is Edmonton’s zone? And what is the majority of the rest of Alberta?

A

4a; 2 or 3

25
Q

What is the concept behind Hardiness Zones? (i.e. how do they determine Hardiness Zones?)

A

Use average minimum (winter) temperature for a place (divided into 10F zones & then sub-zones at 5F increments) then use your zone to determine if you can plant the species or variety in your location.

26
Q

What is a microclimate?

A

A local set of atmospheric conditions that differ from those in the surrounding areas

27
Q

What are some examples of microclimates?

A

Climate near bodies of water (cool the local temp), terrain (slope-aspect), in forests vs. openings (vegetation, even to the level of individual plants), or dense urban areas

28
Q

Within dense urban areas where concrete and asphalt absorb the sun’s energy an ‘___________’ effect is created

A

urban heat island

29
Q

Climate models are at a micro or macro scale?

A

Macro

30
Q

What is biota?

A

A term referring to climate refugia

31
Q

What is buffering?

A

A dampening of fluctuations in T-micro (i.g. under forest canopy)

32
Q

What is buffering?

A

A dampening of fluctuations in T-micro (e.g., under forest canopy)

33
Q

What is decoupling?

A

When T-micro behaves independently from T-macro (e.g., temperatures inside snow during winter are decoupled from above the snow layer)

34
Q

The Alpine wooly lousewort (think of the experiment testing the temp. of the plant with and without the wool) is a __________.

A

micro-greenhouse

35
Q

In a tropical forest, the _____ has wider extremes (colder @ night/winter, hotter in day/summer)

A

T-macro

36
Q

What is cold air drainage also known as?

A

Frost pockets

37
Q

In a frost pocket (the one in the slides) how many times did it frost over 24 hrs.

A

16

38
Q

What are some examples of terrain-related microclimates?

A

Cold air drainages (frost pockets) and slope-aspect relationships

39
Q

What are some aspects of frost pockets?

A

Failure to grow trees including plantings (zonation of veg is affected) & frosts in glacial kettle every night with high pressure systems (clear skies and low humidity)

40
Q

What is meant by a slope-aspect relationship?

A

Angle/tilt of the Earth effects the angle at which solar radiation reaches the ground - latitude also has a large impact on this

41
Q

The terrain can substantially ___ local climates and thus vegetation (ecosystems).

A

alter

42
Q

What other types of bodies of water can result in local microclimates to adjacent land?

A

Large, deep lakes

43
Q

Large lakes at mid-latitudes with open water in winter can cause ____ ____ on adjacent land.

A

snow belts

44
Q

On average the world’s climate over deep time (mainly the Phanerozoic Eon) was ______ without polar ice caps

A

hotter

45
Q

On average the world’s climate over deep time (mainly the Phanerozoic Eon) was _____ with polar ice caps

A

colder

46
Q

The first major polar ice caps formed about how many years ago?

A

350 million

47
Q

Who was Gaia (or Gaea) in Greek mythology?

A

The ancient Greek goddess of Earth (ancestral mother of all life)

REN R 105 (6 decks)

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