ATMS 211

Give examples of statements that describe weather (rather than climate)

"0.24 inches of rain fell at Sea-Tac airport on July 10, 2019" "August 10, 2003 was the hottest day on record in London"

What temperature has a numerical value that is the same in degrees C as in degrees F?

-40

The Little Ice Age was approximately ____ colder than present day temperatures

0.9ºC

The global average temperature on Earth is about 15 oC. What is the (approximate) peak wavelength of Earth's emission spectrum?

10 microns

The presence of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere increases the average global surface temperature. Without an atmosphere, we calculated that our global average temperature would be 255K, but in reality it is closer to 288K. Earth's atmosphere therefore increases the average surface temperature by about...

13%

There are times in Earth's history when Earth was colder than it is at present. During the last ice age, the global average temperature of Earth was about ____ colder than it is at present. There ____ times in Earth's history when Earth was warmer than it is at present.

4.5ºC; are

Imagine a coconut on the shore of a Hawaiian beach on a sunny afternoon. The temperature of the the coconut is 25 oC (~77 degrees F). How much energy per unit area (on average) is the coconut radiating?

447 W/m2

On October 6, at 10:00 AM the temperature in Seattle was 56°F. Later that day, by 1:00 PM, the temperature had reached 65°F. How much did the average temperature change from the morning to the afternoon, in degrees Celsius?

5ºC

We have learned that the greenhouse effect profoundly affects the Earth's surface temperature. Water vapor absorbs more outgoing infrared radiation than any other greenhouse gas. Therefore...

A large portion of the greenhouse effect is determined by a feedback: water vapor concentrations increase as temperature increases, further exacerbating the initial warming.

What are the three must abundant gases in our atmosphere?

Argon (Ar), Nitrogen (N2), and Oxygen (2)

Which anthropogenic activities would lead to an increased concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere?

Deforestation Combustion of coal, oil, and natural gas

What is ozone?

Ozone is considered a pollutant in the troposphere (near the surface), but blocks harmful UV rays in the stratosphere (upper atmosphere)

There are two competing mechanisms in the cloud feedback. What are the mechanisms and how do they impact surface temperatures?

The albedo effect of clouds, which tends to cool the surface; the absorption of infrared (IR) radiation by clouds, which tends to warm the surface

A chemical company announces that it has created two new CFC substitutes that can be used for air conditioning and refrigeration. Both chemicals are greenhouse gases, but one has its main absorption band at 6 microns and the other at 12 microns (see figure of atmospheric window). If we want less warming which chemical should we use?

The chemical that absorbs at 6 microns because this is outside the atmospheric window.

Venus' observed surface temperature is much warmer than Mercury: Venus = 735 K Mercury = 452 K The reason that Venus is so much warmer is because ....

Venus has a stronger greenhouse effect.

list the main greenhouse gases

carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor

Imagine that you have an instrument that measures incoming solar radiation (measured in W/m2). You would likely get a higher measurement during the ____ while standing on a ____ in the middle of ____

day; amidst a forest; the tropical Pacific Ocean

A planet's solar constant varies as 1/r2, where r, the radius, is the distance from the Sun. In other words, if the distance from the sun doubles, a planet's solar constant would _____ by a factor of 4

decrease

Conversely, if the energy emitted is greater than the energy absorbed, then the object's temperature will ______

decrease

The solar constant (S) of Foxtree (500 W/m2) is less than the solar constant of Earth (1360 W/m2). We can therefore infer that Foxtree is a planet that is ____ the Sun.

further away from

Based on lecture and figure 6.3 in your textbook, which factor has been the primary driver of the warming on Earth since 1750?

greenhouse gases

A positive radiative forcing will lead to a(n) _____ in temperature.

increase

If the energy absorbed by an object exceeds the energy emitted by the object, the the object's temperature will ______

increase

A positive radiative forcing is the result of a(n) ______ in solar radiation that gets absorbed by the surface or the atmosphere OR a(n) _______ in infrared radiation that is released to space.

increase; decrease

Consider an object that is gaining energy --it is absorbing photons. The internal energy of the object will increase. This also means that the temperature of the object ____, the peak of the object's emission spectrum (peak wavelength) ____, and the total energy flux emitted by the body ____

increases; decreases; increases

The peak wavelength for terrestrial (Earth's) radiation is within the ____region of the electromagnetic spectrum.

infrared

what 2 human drivers have offset some of the warming that has occurred since the 1970s? (i.e. these factors have worked to COOL, rather than warm the planet)

land cover changes and aerosol emissions

With few sunspots, the year 2005 represents a time when the sun was putting out _____ total energy than in 2001 when there were more sunspots

less

The color of a star is related to its temperature--our eyes see the maximum wavelength that the star is emitting. Some stars appear to be blue while others are red. This is because stars that appear red emit at a ____ peak wavelength than blue stars. Red stars are therefore ____

longer; cooler

objets with higher temperatures emit ______ power per unit of surface area than objects with lower temperatures (SBL)

more

As the albedo increases, the temperature of the planet decreases. This describes a _____ coupling.

negative

If we link the two couplings from the blanket situation together, and don't want the person to get too hot or too cold, this would result in a _______ feedback

negative

if g is negative, that means that the feedback must be

negative

a decrease in sunspot numbers (corresponding to a decrease in solar activity)

negative radiative forcing

a volcanic eruption

negative radiative forcing

increase in sulfate aerosol concentrations

negative radiative forcing

if the changeTf is negative, this means that the feedback must be

not enough information (need the sign of the radiative forcing)

A sudden increase in solar activity causes more solar radiation to fall on Earth, warming the planet, and leading to a _______ radiative forcing.

positive

As the number of people wearing white T-shirts increases, the planetary albedo increases a tiny bit. This describes a _____ coupling.

positive

This increase in temperatures causes an increase in wearing white T-shirts. Because white T-shirt wearing is the variable we are tracking, this describes a _____ coupling.

positive

If the climate cooled, water vapor concentrations would decrease. A decrease in water vapor concentrations leads to a reduction of the greenhouse effect, causing further cooling. this situation describes a....

positive feedback

Due to a failure in the storage tanks, a huge amount of natural gas (methane) was released into Aliso Canyon, California in 2015/2016. This increased concentrations of methane in the atmosphere.

positive forcing

a doubling of methane compared to pre-industrial levels

positive radiating forcing

objects with higher temperatures emit radiation at a peak wavelength that is _____ than objects with lower temperatures Wein's Law)

shorter

greenhouse gases are transparent to ____ radiation, and absorb _____ radiation

solar (mostly visible light radiation); infrared (IR, or heat)

concentrations of atmospheric water vapor tend to be higher in the ______ and in the _______

summer; tropics

If all other factors remain constant, but the albedo of the Earth increases, what will happen to Earth's temperature?

temperature will decrease

On Mercury, which has no atmosphere, the difference between daytime and nighttime temperatures can be 700K (!). On Venus, there is basically no difference between daytime and nighttime temperatures. This is because the Ein (Energy in) to Mercury comes almost completely from_____, so it only receives energy during the day. The highest proportion of Ein for Venus, on the other hand, comes from_____there is very little difference between energy that the planet feels during the day and night.

the Sun; its atmosphere

Consider all of the radiative forcings (anthropogenic and natural) since 1750. The best estimate at the total forcing is + 2.3 W/m2. The positive sign in net radiative forcing is primarily due to ....

the emission of greenhouse gases

What would it mean physically if g = 1?

the final temperature change would be infinitely large

Most heat escapes from ____. This is because it is ____ here and there are ____ clouds.

the regions just North and South of the Equator; warm; few

temperature of an electric blanket // comfortable body temperature fo the person beneath the blanket; creative a positive coupling

the temperature of an electric blanket increases, increasing the body temperature of the person under the blanket

There is a net radiation surplus, with more solar energy absorbed than the amount of terrestrial radiation emitted, in the _______. There is a net radiation deficit in the _______

tropics; polar region

The peak wavelength for solar radiation is within the ____ region of the electromagnetic spectrum.

visible

If greenhouse gases were the only radiative forcing on our planet for the past 140 years, the current temperature would likely be ______ than it is.

warmer