Reconstructing the past

Question 1

components of the environment

Answer 1

atmosphere, cryosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere lithosphere

Question 2

what is environmental change

Answer 2

observable variation/disturbance of the environment, can be short/long term

Question 3

impacts of global warming

Answer 3

melting ice sheets, melting permafrost, shrinking glaciers, sea level rise, storms, desertification, wildfire, biodiversity loss

Question 4

melting ice sheets

Answer 4

less area for animals, high sea levels, less freshwater

Question 5

melting permafrost

Answer 5

soil always frozen, releases greenhouse gases, vegetation changes, bacteria

Question 6

melting glaciers

Answer 6

people depend on water so if they shrink there wont be any left

Question 7

sea level rise

Answer 7

3.6mm/year, causes flooding/loss of coasts/groundwater contamination, due to thermal expansion/coastal sinking/melting glaciers

Question 8

how to reconstruct past climate data

Answer 8

proxy, archives, historical records, modern instrumental records

Question 9

what’s a proxy

Answer 9

indirect climate measurement, tree rings, ice cores, pollen

Question 10

what’s an archive

Answer 10

long term measurement of climate change, ice cores, lake sediments

Question 11

how much has temperatures increased per year

Answer 11

0.18C

Question 12

what has happened to dry areas

Answer 12

desertification meaning lost lakes and less flora/fauna