Quiz #5

Question 1

Neutral Conditions

Answer 1

“Neutral” Conditions
•Steady trade winds blow from east to west across the equator
•This causes a pile up of warm water in the western pacific
•Warm water increases air temperatures and moisture content (through convection) causing rain. This moist air then travels east, cools, and loses its moisture content.
•RISE in the WEST and then FALLS in the EAST
•This pattern of circulation is called the WALKER CIRCULATION

Question 2

El Nino

Answer 2

Easterlies are weakened, warm water move to central and eastern pacific ocean

Result: •The atmospheric jet stream becomes faster and shifts its position, displacing the usual location of high-and low-pressure systems and altering normal storm tracks. This, in turn, modifies wet and dry areas, causing some places to experience droughts while others may get floods, landslides, and a redistribution of groundwater

Warmer waters in South America cause issues for fisherman

Rain and flooding along Pacific coast
Warm water disrupts food chain of bird, fish and mammals
Thunderstorms and Tornados in S US
Fewer hurricains in Atlantic
Cold conditions in the Western Pacific (Asia) and warm wet conditions along Eastern Pacific Coast
Older ocean temps in Aus and no rain, leading to drought

Question 3

La Nina

Answer 3

Easterlies blow even stronger from east to west
Walker circulation even stronger

Snow and rain on west coast
Older in Alaska
Unusually warmer in US
Drought in southwest
Higher hurricans in Atlantic
Heavier rain in the western pacific, and colder drier conditions in eastern pacific
Intense rain in austrlia
1.5m higher waters in australia
Temp is 8 degrees higher in the west, cooler temp in South America

Question 4

How does El Nino effect C02

Answer 4

• Central America typically becomes warmer and drier during El Niño years
• Vegetation that is stressed from heat and drought cannot absorb as much atmospheric carbon
• Wildfires release extra CO2 into the air

Question 5

How does El Nino effect the PNW

Answer 5

Heavy Rain

Landslides in Northern California, flash floods in Louisiana and Alabama. Extreme rail in Sothern Cali from mudslides

Question 6

What is PDO

Answer 6

Pacific Decadal Oscilliation
is a pattern of Pacific climate variability similar to ENSO in character, but which varies over a much longer time scale. •The PDO can remain in the same phase for 20 to 30 years, while ENSO cycles typically only last 6 to 18 month

Question 7

What is carbon sequestration

Answer 7

When carbon is converted into other products when then is stored in plants, soils, oceans, or geological formations

Question 8

Some sources of carbon

Answer 8

• Transportation
• Industry
• Agriculture
• Fires
• Warming causing melting, thawing and methane releas

Question 9

Some sinks of carbon

Answer 9

Plants-converts CO2 through photosynthesis, eventually gets returned to the soils as organic matter
Oceans - carbon dissolves in water, approx 1/3 of human carbon is sequestered by the oceans, as CO2 concentration increases, the carbonate ions become limited so oceans become less able to take up CO2
Soils