Climate And Climate Change (Didn't Finish!)

Front 1

What is Earth System Science?

Back 1

Study of how the following systems are linked to affect life on Earth

1.) atmosphere
2.) ocean
3.) land
4.) biosphere

Front 2

Difference between weather and climate?

Back 2

Weather refers to temporary atmospheric conditions

Climate refers to characteristic atmospheric conditions over long periods of time

Front 3

What is the Koppen System?

Back 3

Defines climate zones and uses a monthly average temperature and precipitation associated with different types of vegetation

Front 4

Linkages of hazards

Back 4

-Flooding to rainfall
-Landslides to rainy climates
-Wildfires to dry areas

Front 5

The Atmosphere

Back 5

Has three gases:
Permanent, variable, and aerosols

*see other notecards

Front 6

Permanent

Back 6

-Proportions stay constant
-Nitrogen and oxygen
-Have little affect on atmosphere

Front 7

Variable Gasses

Back 7

-Proportions vary with time and space
-Play role in atmospheric dynamics
-Carbon dioxide, water vapor, ozone, methane, nitrous
oxide, and halocarbons.

Front 8

Aerosols

Back 8

Particles whose proportions vary with time and space

Front 9

Glaciations

Back 9

1.) Cryosphere: Part of hydrosphere where ice stays frozen year round
ex: Permafrost, sea ice, ice caps, glaciers, and ice
sheets
2.) Flow from high areas to low areas under ice weight
3.) Glacial Intervals: Periods with major continental glaciations
4.) Interglacial Intervals: Warmer periods, less glaciations
5.) Multiple advances and retreats of glaciers:
Rare, but several in last 1 billion yrs

Front 10

Pleistocene Epoch

Back 10

-Last series of glacial and interglacial periods
-Multiple ice ages
-Glaciers used to cover 30% of Earth now 10%
-Global sea level >330 ft lower than today

Front 11

Glacial Hazard

Back 11

Melting and movement caused property damages, injuries, and death

Such as:
-fall into crevasses
-glacial ice can fall from above
-overrun villages
-produce ice jam, causing flooding
-blocks of ice may fall off in avalanche
-Calving (splitting apart glaciers) produces icebergs in the ocean

Front 12

How we study climate change?

Back 12

1.) Instrumental Record
2.) Historical Record
3.) Paleo-Proxy Record
*see other notecards

Front 13

Instrumental Record

Back 13

-Temp measurements (1860)
-CO2 measurements(1960)
-Solar is from past several decades

Front 14

Historical Record

Back 14

Written collections (books, newspapers, articles, journals, etc)

Front 15

Paleo-Proxy Record

Back 15

-Correlated with climate
-Not direct measurement of temp
-Provide the best evidence that predates the historical and instrumental records
-Includes 3 data sources: Tree Rings, Sediments, and Ice Cores, Pollen, Corals, Carbon-14, and Carbon Dioxide

Front 16

Tree Rings

Back 16

Growth of trees depends on the rainfall and temperature changes

Extends back more than 10,000 years!

Front 17

Dendroclimatology

Back 17

Climate record provided by tree rings

Front 18

Sediments

Back 18

Chemical sediments are interpreted to provide climate change data

(drill into ocean or lake to find them)

Front 19

Ice Cores

Back 19

Ice studied to determine composition of water

-Tells us about the volume of ice on land and the processes occurring in the paleo-oceans

(drill into just the ocean to find them)

Front 20

Pollen

Back 20

-Reflects climate
-Can be preserved in sedimentary layers to form chronology

Front 21

Corals

Back 21

Calcium Carbonate in the corals can has isotopes of oxygen and trace metals that can be analyzed for temperature

Front 22

Carbon-14

Back 22

Gives info about solar (sunspot) activity

*explains warming during the Medieval Warming Period and
cooling during Little Ice Age

(found in tree ring data)

Front 23

Carbon Dioxide

Back 23

MOST IMPORTANT PROXY FOR TEMP CHANGE!

(Comes from instrumental record and ice core samples!)

Front 24

What are the two Global Climate Models?

Back 24

General Circulation Model and the Global Climate Model

*see other flashcards

Front 25

General Circulation Model

Back 25

Used to forecast weather
-large stack of boxes that are 3-dimensional cells
-6-20 layers of cells and height varies
-

Front 26

Global Climate Models

Back 26

Used to describe climate
-models run backwards to describe historic climate changes
-

Front 27

Global Warming

Back 27

-Land and ocean temps rose in the past 50 years
-Resulting form burning of fossil fuels
-Both human and natural processes contribute

Front 28

The Greenhouse Effect

Back 28

Earth's energy balance:
A lot of energy is coming from sun, 1 watt/sq meter

-The sunlight we receive is short and visible and it's absorbed by Earth and the atmosphere
-Reradiated radiation is long-wave infrared
-Greenhouse gases include: Water vapor carbon dioxide, methane, and chlorofluorocarbons absorb infrared and are warmed

Front 29

What does Earth's temperature depend on?

Back 29

-sunlight received
-sunlight reflected
-reradiated heat that is retained

Front 30

What would happen if we didn't have Greenhouse Gases?

Back 30

-Earth's temp would be 33 degrees colder
-Surface water would be frozen
-Little life on earth

Front 31

Carbon Dioxide and Greenhouse Gases?

Back 31

CO2 is most of the antropogenic greenhouse gas

Concentrations were between 200-300ppm and now 390 to possibly 490 in 2050.

Front 32

Global Temp Change (last 800,000 yrs)

Back 32

Low temps-continental glaciations
High temps-interglacial periods

Front 33

Global Temp Change (last 150,000 yrs)

Back 33

Eemian! (Last Major interglacial period)

Sea level was 4-6 feet higher than today

Front 34

Global Temp Change (last 18,000 yrs)

Back 34

Younger Dryas! Cold. Happened 11,500 yrs ago then a little warming during Holocene Maximum.

Recent cooling, "Little Ice Age", in the 15-19th centuries

Front 35

Global Temp Change (last 1000 yrs)

Back 35

Warming and Cooling

Warming in 1100-1300AD to allow vikings into greenland, iceland, and North America

Front 36

Global Temp Change (Last 140 yrs)

Back 36

1940s started a warming trend and temperatures in the last 30 yrs are the warmest recorded since studying began

Front 37

Milankovitch cycles it terms of why climate changes?

Back 37

Natural changes in Earth's orbit, tilt

Front 38

Climate forcing

Back 38

An imposed change of Earth's energy balance

Front 39

Climate sensitivity

Back 39

Climates response after a new equilibrium has been established

Front 40

Climate response time

Back 40

The time required for a response from the Climate Forcing to occur

Front 41

What is the Ocean Conveyor Belt?

Back 41

-Circulation of ocean water than can cause fast climate change
-Strong northward movement of currents cooling when they reach greenland and cooling and sinking down becoming saltier and denser

Front 42

Little Ice Age and Medieval Warming Period caused by what?

Back 42

Corresponds to drop and increase in solar radiation

Front 43

What is Volcanic Forcing?

Back 43

Ash from eruptions reflects sunlight having a cooling effect

Front 44

What is the Positive Feedback Cycle in terms of glaciers and ice caps?

Back 44

Having ice reflects back sunlight and keeps temperature cool but since it's melting, darker ground is exposed and absorbing heat making it hotter