ES 200 FINAL
By establishing a price on greenhouse gas emissions, companies can be charged a dollar amount for every ton of emissions they produce. This mechanism is referred to as:
A carbon tax
Global warming potential (GWP) is a way to rank the radiation absorbing power of a greenhouse gas. Which of the following gases has the lowest GWP value?
CO2
All of the following are examples of reactive adaptation except:
Early warning systems
In the global methane budget:
Total global emissions are 558 Tg, and wetlands account for 167 Tg.
Major world biomes in order of decreasing total global C storage in plant biomass are:
Tropical forests, temperate forests, grasslands/savannas, boreal forests, deserts
As of 2019, which country is exiting the Paris Climate Agreement?
United States
A climate forcing agent always increases earth's temperature
false
The greenhouse gas with the largest Global Warming Potential (GWP) is carbon dioxide
false
Wein's Law states that warmer bodies give off radiation at longer wavelengths than cooler bodies
false
The major source of carbon dioxide emissions from 1960 to today is:
fossil fuels and cement
Stromatolites are dome-shaped structures formed by microbial mats that exist in the fossil record as evidence of early photosynthetic Life on Earth, but they are also currently being formed in real-time in such places as western Australia.
true
Studies have shown that climate change regulation (in the form of a tax) can place a disproportionate burden on low-income households.
true
T/F—The formula "CH4" is for the greenhouse gas methane
true
The Sustainable Development Goals were adopted by the United Nations in
2015
A natural resource that can be accessed and used by everyone (e.g. fish in the ocean) is referred to as:
A common-pool resource
When improvements in energy efficiency encourage a change in behavior towards increased use, we refer to this as:
A rebound effect
Of the RCP scenarios shown below, which has the highest emissions associated with it?
RCP 8.5
Which of the following is an example of green infrastructure?
rain garden
The major way we in the U.S. use petroleum for our energy needs is:
transportation
Urban heat islands can negatively impact urban communities as temperatures increase from climate change. To cool urban heat islands, communities can do any of the following except:
Increase impervious surface
The regions that emit the most greenhouse gases are always the most vulnerable to climate change impacts.
false
The social vulnerability index is particularly accurate at very fine scales (e.g. a single community or group of communities)
false
Cold upwelling is:
The upwelling of cold, nutrient-rich deep ocean currents, often along the western coasts of continents that sustain extremely high biological productivity and support vibrant fisheries, such as anchovies off the coast of Peru.
Evapotranspiration is:
The water evaporated from a unit area of land that includes the water transpired by plants and evaporation from the soil surface combined.
Geographical and sociocultural contexts influence the severity of climate change impacts.
True
Sustainability of humans on earth is closely linked to resilient socio-ecological systems.
True
T/F—The elemental symbol for calcium is Ca
True
The biome with by far the highest amount of C in the plant biomass is tropical forests.
True
The severity of Hurricane Harvey's impacts on Houston was influenced by:
a. Aging infrastructure b. Extensive impervious surface (Both a and b)
Globally, wetlands occupy 45 % of the terrestrial land area, but only store 3 % of soil organic C.
false
In terms of ecosystem equilibrium, managed ecosystems are more-or-less in equilibrium with the physical environment and associated ecosystems, and provide broad ecosystem services.
false
T/F-The "ice age" occurred during the Holocene epic
false
As the number of sun spots increases the amount of incoming radiation the Earth receives from the sun also increases
true
Beach re-nourishment will be used more in the future to offset the effects of sea-level rise.
true
Cultural beliefs and religion can influence an individual's risk perception
true
Cultural beliefs and religion can influence an individual's risk perception.
true
Approximately 200 to 300 million years ago the Earth's average temperature was thought to be over 10 oC warmer than today's. Mass extinctions occurred. One theory for the warmer temperature is that the atmosphere held high concentrations of CO2 gas. The source for this gas was
volcanic eruptions that spilled lava over a massive area over a 1 million-year period
The Stefan-Boltzman Law says that
warmer bodies give off more radiation (more Wm-2) than colder bodies
A major source of climate change assessments is the IPCC whose full name is
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
The ranking of world oceans by size, largest to smallest, is:
Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Antarctic, Arctic
Which of the following include major greenhouse gases
Water vapor, methane, nitrous oxide
Greenhouse gases contribute to global warming because they:
absorb and re-emit infrared radiation
The composition and productivity of ecosystems are
affected by abiotic (climate, disturbance, topography, soils, storms, etc.) and biotic (number and identity of species, trophic dynamics, pests and pathogens, etc.) factors; difficult to predict to due inter-annual variation in interacting abiotic and biotic factors (a+b)
In the U.S. we produce more natural gas than any other fuel source. However, the fuel we use for most of our electricity production is:
coal
Global warming will likely cause More hurricanes to occur.
false
The emission source that produces the least or smallest amount of carbon dioxide emissions of those shown below is:
natural gas
The sun emits radiation in the visible range while the Earth emits radiation in the infrared range. This is because
the sun is hotter than the earth
Earth System Models (ESM) are the most complex of the climate models developed
true
El Nino events occur periodically when the winds blowing westward across the ocean have become weaker or changed direction. When these events occur the water off the west coast of South America becomes _______________.
warmer
Sea level is rising as global temperatures rise. The causes of sea level rise include the melting of ice sheets as well as glaciers. Another and potentially larger cause of sea level rise is
water expands on warming
The largest single source of methane is (are):
wetlands
The Earth's surface receives from the sun approximately 161 Wm-2 of radiation. It also receives an amount of radiation from the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The amount of radiation from the greenhouse gases that is emitted back to the earth's surface is approximately
342 Wm-2
Methane concentrations in the atmosphere have risen by 15% since 1980. Methane is formed when bacteria "eat" or decompose organic matter under anaerobic conditions. In addition to organic carbon, bacteria need ___________ to form methane.
CO2
Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) are emission scenarios that modelers use to estimate potential temperatures in the future. Which of the following are used in developing a given RCP scenario?
CO2, N2O, and CH4
What replaced the Kyoto Protocol as the key doctrine encouraging industrialized countries to limit their GHG emissions?
Paris Climate Agreement
The 'Tragedy of the Commons' concept describes how:
People acting in self-interest can lead to natural resource overexploitation
"Snowball Earth" refers to:
Several episodes in Earth's deep geologic history where global cooling prevailed (2.3 Ga, 750 to 580 Ma), in which ice extended from the poles to equator and the mean annual temperature was -50 degrees C.
The social, economic, and demographic characteristics that influence a community's ability to prepare for, respond, cope with, recover from, and ultimately adapt to environmental hazards is referred to as:
Social vulnerability
The definition of ecosystems is:
Specific assemblages of populations of organisms forming communities in a geographic area resulting from ecological processes operating over evolutionary time, interacting with the physical environment.
Nutrient cycling falls into which category of ecosystem services?
Supporting ecosystem services
Development that meets our current needs without hindering the ability of future generations to meet their needs is referred to as:
Sustainable development
Savannas and grasslands:
a. Cover about 30 % of the global land area b. Are often mixtures of co-existing trees and grasses, with trees increasing due to recent land use change c. May experience decreases in NPP in the tropics and increases in the temperate zone in response to warming (a, b and c)
Albedo is an important control over Earth's surface energy budget by reflecting incoming solar energy back to the atmosphere.
a. Dark forests have relatively low albedo c. Ice and snow covered surface have very high albedo (both a + c)
Increasing atmospheric and water temperatures resulting from climate change can:
a. Increase exposure to pathogens and toxins in shellfish b. Decrease macro- and micro-nutrients in crops (Both a and b)
Presence of people, livelihoods, ecosystems, and assets in places that could be adversely impacted by climate-related events is referred to as:
exposure
What is meant by the term "biophysical feedbacks" to the climate system:
the reflectivity (albedo), latent heat exchange (evapotranspiration), sensible heat flux, and atmospheric coupling (aerodynamically rough or smooth vegetation canopies) that control the surface energy budget.
The Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum was a period of extreme global warming (+15 oC relative to today) that occurred about 55 Ma due to rapidly rising atmospheric CO2/CH4 from vast coal swamps and volcanism of shifting tectonic plates. Often studied as an analog for today's period of rapid global warming.
true
The Sustainable Development Goals were adopted by the United Nations in 2015
true
Humans are economic creatures by nature. This is evidenced by such things as:
(both a + b) a. "Cahokia", largest urban center of Mississippian culture, declined after 1250 AD due to natural resources depletion. b. Current world gross domestic product, which has increased from about 1 to 70 trillion US dollars from about 1960 to 2017.
The generally accepted concentration of C in plant biomass is:
50 %, but it can vary from the high 30's to the low 50's
Which most accurately describes the K-T Extinction Event?
A massive meteorite (~15 km diameter) struck the Earth at the boundary between the Cretacous and Tertiary Periods (~65 Ma), causing a nuclear-winter type event that drastically changed the climate causing extinction of many dominant plants and animals.
The mountain pine beetle is an example of:
A native insect species that is expanding its range to higher latitudes due to the warming climate, with potential to devastate forests across northern Canada that were previously protected by cold winters.
Which of the following is an example of ecosystem resilience?
Ability of a freshwater lake to remain in a clear-water condition despite the addition of excess nutrients from agricultural runoff, at least until some threshold of water-column nutrient concentration is exceeded.
The process of adjustment to actual or expected climate and its effects. In human systems, these strategies seek to moderate or avoid harm or exploit beneficial opportunities. These strategies are referred to as:
Adaptation
Originally promoted in disaster recovery work, the social and technical skills and strategies of individuals/groups directed towards responding to environmental or socioeconomic changes is referred to as:
Adaptive capacity
The name increasingly used for our current geologic epoch to highlight the dominant role humans have played over the last century in shaping the environment
Anthropocene
Coastal ecosystems occur along the world's continental margins, where:
Approximately 2.4 billion people or 33 % of the human population live
The "biological pump" can best be described as:
Carbon and nutrient fluxes to great depths of the ocean water column, and eventual burial in sea floor sediments, due to "leakage" of marine food webs of the euphotic zone
The "biological pump" can best be described as:
Carbon and nutrient fluxes to great depths of the ocean water column, and eventual burial in sea floor sediments, due to "leakage" of marine food webs of the euphotic zone, based on photosynthesis by phytoplankton, consumption by zooplankton, and higher trophic levels.
Forced relocation of people due to acute or long-term changes in local environment that negatively impact well-being and livelihoods is known as:
Climate migration
Pre-Cambrian time:
Comprises the Archean, Hadean and Proterozoic Eons, about 4 Gy in duration, representing 7/8 of Earth's geologic history.
All of the following are intensifying or exacerbating droughts except:
Desalinization
The goal of the IPCC is to:
Distill the cumulative scientific knowledge on climate change in support of public policy towards a sustainable future.
Of the following, the highest impact personal choice you can make to reduce your carbon footprint is:
Eating a plant-based diet
The benefits human populations derive, directly or indirectly from ecosystem functions are referred to as:
Ecosystem Services
The Aspen FACE Project was an experiment to examine the effects of elevated atmospheric CO2 and rising tropospheric O3 on northern forest ecosystems. The acronym "FACE" stands for:
Free-Air Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Enrichment
The acronym FACE stands for:
Free-Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment
The government responded to climate impacts on Isle de Jean Charles by:
Initiating a climate relocation project to move the community on the island to higher ground
Strategies that limit or prevent greenhouse gas emissions and/or enhance activities that remove these gases from the atmosphere are known as:
Mitigation strategies
How have climate models shown that human activities have caused global average temperature to rise?
Model results only match observations when human impacts, such as greenhouse gas concentrations, are included
The Archean Eon of Earth's deep geologic past:
Occurred 3.8 to 2.5 Ga and saw formation of early continents, abundant liquid water/oceans, and the rise of single-celled prokaryotic organisms that oxygenated the atmosphere through photosynthesis.
Of the following, which provides the best example of a mitigation strategy:
Reducing the carbon intensity of electricity by incorporating renewable energy sources (like solar energy)
A system that responds to a hazardous event in a way that maintains its essential basic function and structure is known as what type of system?
Resilient
Holdridge Life Zones are determined by a system of bio-climatic land classification based on:
Temperature, precipitation, and evapotranspiration
Called for by the United Nations Secretary General in 2000, this report documented the consequences of ecosystem change for human health and well-being:
The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
When calculating the 'social cost of carbon', a key uncertainty in the estimate comes from which of the following:
The discount rates applied
In terms of the global C cycle:
The oceans are by far the largest pool (standing stock) of C in the system
In the scientific method:
The self-correcting nature of science usually means that mistakes or even deceptions do not last long.
T/F-Shells that grew in cold water have higher 18O/16O than shells growing in warm water
True
T/F—The letters IPCC stand for "Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change"
True
Temperature anomalies are used to summarize temperature data from around the world. Anomalies are calculated for individual weather stations on a given day by subtracting the temperature on that day from
a baseline of average temperature determined over a number of years from the same station
Which statement(s) best characterize(s) the global C cycle?
a. A pool of C is a standing stock of C, while a flux is movement of C between pools. c. In terrestrial ecosystems, the largest pool of C is in soil (1500-2400 Pg) compared to vegetation (450-650 Pg). (both a+c)
Metrics like the social vulnerability index help planners and emergency responders to
a. Identify disaster risk by identifying vulnerable populations b. Provide a baseline from which the success of interventions can be assessed (Both a and b)
In terms of sea level rise along the North Carolina coast:
a. Submerged dune ridge complexes along the continental shelf show that sea level was 410 feet below the current level during the last glacial maximum 18,000 years ago. b. The current rate of sea level rise is faster along the northern coastal zone compared to the southern, due to the additive effects of both eustatic sea level rise (expansion due to warming) and isostatic rebound of the northern tectonic plate. (both a + b)
North Carolina is unique in that the northern and southern zones of the coastal plain experience different rates of sea level rise (SLR). Which of the following best describes the situation?
b. North Carolina experiences some of the highest rates of sea level rise globally. c. The Northern coastal zone experiences both eustatic sea level rise, that is expansion due to warming, plus isostatic rebound of the tectonic plate due to retreat of Pleistocene glaciation. ( both b + c)
Banded-iron formations are:
b. Rocks with alternating red and grey bands of oxidized and reduced forms of iron that formed 3.2 to 2.3 Ga, providing evidence for early evolution of aerobic photosynthesis, from which oxygen accumulated in the atmosphere as a waste product. c. Are found around the world, including northern Michigan, supporting the development of iron mining economies. (both b + c)
An individual's perceived risk is identical to their actual, objective level of risk
false
Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere absorb visible light
false
Ocean surface waters, that is the first 100 m of depth, are uniformly mixed in terms of temperature, salinity, nutrient concentrations, and light availability.
false
The ____________ shows the changes in carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere over time.
keeling curve
As Earth's temperature rises, the amount of water vapor in the atmosphere increases. This causes more infrared radiation from the earth to be absorbed by the vapor, and this also causes the temperature to rise, leading to increasing amounts of water vapor in the atmosphere. This process is an example of
positive feedback loop
The three geologic eons spanning approximately the first 4 billion years of Earth's history are known as:
the Hadean, Archean, and Proterozoic
"Boreal refugia" refers to unique ecosystems typical of much higher latitudes and colder climates that have persisted since the last glacial maximum ~25,000 years ago due to specialized physiographic settings. The spruce-fir-sugar maple forests of the North Carolina Mountains, that very closely resemble forests in northern Michigan, are good examples and are highly threatened by continued climate warming.
true
As climate warms, ocean temperatures will rise slower than those on land
true
Leslie Holdridge was an American scientist who was among the first to develop a system of bio-climatic land area classification based on temperature, precipitation and evapotranspiration to explain the distribution of ecosystems around the world.
true
NC temperature may rise 2-3 C by 2100
true
Negative feedback loops promote stability in socio-ecological systems.
true
Rising temperatures and increased water temperatures will cause increased exposure to certain pathogens and toxins in seafood (like oysters)
true
The first US mining boom occurred in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (1840-1965) and holds lessons for today's society regarding environmental sustainability, human diversity and social justice, and environmental legacies left to future generations
true
The tropical climate and colonial history are two factors that contribute to the economic disparity between the tropics and temperate regions
true
The tropical climate and colonial history are two factors that contribute to the economic disparity between the tropics and temperate regions.
true
Threats that are concrete, immediate, and indisputable are often the most salient.
true
Throughout history, societies have adapted to climate variability, and extremes with varying degrees of success.
true
Vulnerable communities living in high-hazard areas like coastal flood zones may not have access to full compensation by social safety nets like the National Flood Insurance Program or Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) due to historical legacies of displacement and disadvantage.
true
Oxygen isotopes are used to estimate temperatures of the past. The ratio of 18O to 16O (18O/16O) is measured as a proxy for temperature. During colder periods the ratio of 18O/16O in ocean water is larger than in warmer periods because
More 16O in water is locked up in ice on land
If a certain greenhouse gas has a radiative forcing value of 1 Wm-2, how much of a temperature change could be attributed to this? [Hint: use the climate sensitivity parameter.]
Rise of 0.4 oC
The Earth is a giant heat engine, where the global heating imbalance drives atmospheric and oceanic circulation. High latitudes receive less radiation (incoming energy) than the tropics because:
The Sun's light passes through a longer path through the atmosphere and is spread out over a larger surface area at high latitudes due to curvature of the Earth.
Heat in the oceans is distributed from the equator to the poles, driving the climate system. This is accomplished by:
a. Rapid surface currents such as the Gulf Steam b. Very slow deep currents, such as the Thermo-Haline Circulation c. Stochastic, periodic events such as El Nino and even hurricanes (All of the above)
Energy balance models of the Earth have shown that the amount of incoming energy from the sun is slightly greater than the amount of energy re-emitted back into space. As a result the Earth is warming. Where is most of the excess energy being stored?
ocean
Ensembles or groups of models are used to make predictions of future average global temperatures
true
Global warming will cause more intense (category 4 or 5) hurricanes to occur
true
Groundwater holds most of the fresh water that humans use
true
Modern humans (HOMO SAPIENS):
(both a + b) a. evolved from ancestral lineages about 200,000 years ago during the Pleistocene experiencing episodes of glaciation, but all of our modern agricultural and industrial society has only developed during the climatically favorable inter-glacial epoch known as the Holocene ( last 10,000 y or so). b. with their agriculture and industrial society are having cumulative impacts on the global climate system that rival geologic forces, leading some scientists to suggest we live in a new epoch called "The Anthropocene".
The Seuss Effect is used to explain why fossil fuels are the major source responsible for rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. The Seuss Effect shows that the levels of _________ are decreasing due to dilution of carbon dioxide from fossil fuels which contain no ___________. [Same answer for both blanks]
14C
The definition of "biome" is:
An area of Earth that can be classified by the major plants and animals that live in it and the dominant temperature and moisture regimes
Which of the following energy sources are cheaper to use than coal for producing electricity?
Both of the sources listed are cheaper than coal
When a natural landscape provides spiritual benefits to an individual or group, this landscape is providing a:
Cultural ecosystem service
The benefits human populations derive, directly or indirectly from ecosystem functions are referred to as
Ecosystem services
Protection of human communities from extreme sea level, storm surges, flooding, etc., is an important service provided by coastal ecosystems, which may also simultaneously act to mitigate climate change and increase resilience to future hazards. What are the mechanisms by which this protection is achieved?
Energy dissipation/wave attenuation, C uptake/burial, sediment accretion/stabilization, vegetative growth.
Boreal forest responses to climate change/global warming include expanding the southern distribution limit to lower latitudes, decreasing fire frequency, and lower NPP.
False
Cropland occupies the most land area globally of any land use today
False
In terms of human consumption of fish from the oceans:
Global demand increased from 20 million tons to over 160 million tons, with almost half of that being supplied by aquaculture in recent years.
The phrase "Planet Earth Quo Vadis?" basically means:
Humans are at a crossroads between choosing to use science and a sense of justice to engineer a sustainable, equitable future or to continue mining the environment unsustainably.
World carbon stocks are the places that hold carbon for some period but do release it so it can be recycled. The place where the most carbon is stored is the:
Intermediate and deep ocean
The carbonate chemistry of seawater plays a role in ocean acidification, in that as atmospheric CO2 concentration rises:
More CO2 diffuses into seawater, decreasing the pH (acidification), which decreases the concentration of carbonate ion (CO32-), which causes the dissolution of carbonate structures (such as shells and coral reefs) to maintain chemical equilibrium.
Copper mining in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan:
Provides an example for today's society of the lasting externalities of industrial economies on environmental quality/sustainabilty analogous to the issue of fossil fuels and climate change
"Coastal squeeze" refers to the phenomenon whereby:
Shoreline erosion and natural sand migration in response to sea-level rise causes seaward land loss of coastal barrier islands, narrowing them and threatening human settlements.
The definition of "ecosystem" is:
Specific assemblages of populations of organisms forming communities in a geographic area resulting from ecological processes operating over evolutionary time, interacting with the physical environment
Climate forcing agents are things that can cause Earth's temperature change. Some forcing agents cause the Earth to warm by absorbing radiation and re-emitting it. Other forcing agents cause Earth's temperature to cool. Which of the following cause Earth's temperature to cool when they are in the atmosphere?
Sulphuric acid, nitric acid, volcanic particles ejected during eruptions
The Big Bang Theory states:
That all matter in the universe instantaneously came into existence 13.8 billion years ago, primarily as hydrogen and helium
The term "life cycle analysis" refers to:
The accounting of all CO2 and GHG fluxes, and changes in C pools, associated with a given type of land use practice, such as short-rotation coppice culture of trees for bioenergy, to determine the net "climatic footprint" compared to traditional land uses and energy production systems (e.g. fossil fuels).
Where in the atmosphere are most greenhouse gases found?
Troposphere (approximately 0-6 miles)
In terms of the world's coastlines, there are:
a total of 620,000 kilometers of coastline, within 100 km of which live nearly 2.4 billion people (or 1/3 of the total human population!)
The term "Global Change" refers to the fact that:
a. Climate change is just one of many ways that modern society is affecting the environment, possibly decreasing Earth's capacity to continue providing important ecosystem services. c. There is a huge patch of plastic garbage floating in the Pacific Ocean.
The goods and services provided by coastal ecosystems:
a. Depend on the structure and function of the ecosystem, and can be divided into use and non-use values b. Can be influenced by human impacts on ecosystem structure and function c. Have been given an economic value for only some goods and services, but not all (All of the above)
In terms of forest responses to climate change:
a. Drought can kill forests directly if severe enough. b. Forests are dying all around the globe in response to drought stress. c. Drought often (usually...?) interacts with other stress factors such as insect pests, fire, etc., to damage or destroy forests. (All of the above)
Major world biomes include:
a. Oceans, freshwater bodies, and coastal ecosystems b. Polar tundra and cryosphere c. Deserts, steppes, and Mediterranean ecosystems (all of the above)
Tundra ecosystem responses to climate change include:
a. Warming much more than the global average over the past 100 years b. Permafrost melting and increase in the soil active zone c. Encroachment of woody shrubs and increased NPP d. Positive biophysical feedbacks accelerating the rate of climate change e. Sea ice retreat, stressing marine ecosystems (a through e)
Radiative forcing is a measure for how a given 'forcing agent' (e.g., greenhouse gas) has contributed to global temperature rise from the year 1750 to today. Which of the following has the largest radiative forcing value
carbon dioxide
Methane is a strong greenhouse gas, but its lifespan in the atmosphere is about 10 years. It doesn't last, because it is oxidized to:
carbon dioxide and water vapor
The average temperature and average precipitation over a 30-year period are used to define a region's
climate
The level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere fluctuates annually. It is highest in the Spring but declines over the summer in the northern hemisphere. This decline is caused by:
deciduous tree leaves taking in carbon dioxide during photosynthesis
Nitrous oxide levels have been increasing in the atmosphere since 1980. This greenhouse gas is created in wetlands when nitrate is being converted to a gas by the process of:
denitrification
Climate models have been developed to better understand Earth's climate system. There are three major groups of models. One group of models includes computations of the various biogeochemical cycles that include the carbon cycle, sulphur cycle, and ozone. This group is best for simulating past and future climates and represents the state of the art climate models. The name for this group of models is
earth systems model
Extensive experimentation has shown that elevated atmospheric CO2 tends to decrease forest productivity, whereas high tropospheric O3 increases it.
false
Human society flourished during a period of great climate instability.
false
In order to agree with observations of temperature, climate models must exclude the impacts of greenhouse gases
false
Incoming radiation to the earth is larger than the radiation being returned to space. The excess energy is being stored mostly in the atmosphere
false
Natural gas is the fuel that releases the most CO2 into the atmosphere
false
The Keeling curve shows the increase in N2O over time
false
The social vulnerability index is particularly accurate at very fine scales (e.g. a single neighborhood or community).
false
The urban heat island effect has contributed to the largest rise in global temperature
false
Throughout the Phanerozoic, the last ~540 million years of Earth's geologic history, the distribution of the continents around the globe and the climate have remained very stable.
false
Reducing the amount of food wasted can reduce global emissions of greenhouse gases. Americans waste most of their food:
in their homes and restaurants
The isotopes of oxygen differ in the number of _____________ in their nucleus
neutrons
When moist air hits a mountain it rises, cools, and drops its moisture as rain on one side of the mountain. As the air moves over the mountain, the area it passes over will get less rain over time than the other side of the mountain. This phenomenon is called the
rain shadow effect
When the Earth's temperature was 10 oC warmer than today's temperature, CO2concentrations in the atmosphere were probably over twice the levels they are today. These large quantities of CO2 were slowly removed from the atmosphere, cooling the earth, by
rock weathering reactions which took the CO2 out of the atmosphere and stored it in limestone bedrock containing CaCO3
"Risk", as defined by the IPCC, is the intersection of a climate hazard (such as flooding), vulnerability (such as low-lying coastal counties in eastern NC), and exposure (the increasing intensity/frequency of tropical storm systems due to the warming climate).
true
A representative concentration pathway (RCP) of 8.5 assumes higher concentrations of CO2gases in the atmosphere by 2100 than and an RCP of 2.5
true
About 90% of the water evaporated from the ocean returns to the ocean as rain without going over land
true
Although not officially recognized by international scientific societies responsible for naming conventions of Earth's geologic history, many scientists think we are living in a new geologic epoch called the "Anthropocene" because the cumulative impact of human activities on the planet rivals that of geologic forces.
true
As of 2019, the United States is the only country actively attempting to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement.
true
Climate feedback loops can increase or dampen the response to a forcing
true
Coal is the fuel used that produces the most electricity in the U.S
true
Ephemeral plant tissues are those that grow and are shed on short timescales (months to years), such as leaves and fine roots, creating inputs of carbon into soils important to the formation of soil organic carbon (SOC).
true
Examples that suggest global climate change is affecting ocean ecosystems and the economies that depend on them is the northward movement of important fisheries along the US Atlantic coast, such as summer flounder and Maine lobsters.
true
Geographical and sociocultural contexts influence the severity of climate change impacts
true
Global warming will not necessarily cause more hurricanes to occur, but the hurricanes that do occur will more often be found in categories 4 and 5.
true
IPCC projections of responses of agricultural systems to the changing climate include yield declines, movement to higher latitudes, and accompanying socio-economic adjustments/stress.
true
If an object has an albedo of 70%, then 70% of the incoming radiation is reflected
true
Increases in carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and halocarbon gases have caused global temperatures to rise by about 1 oC since 1750
true
Increasing temperatures from climate change can lead to increased incidences of vector-borne diseases like malaria, Zika, and West Nile virus.
true
Indirect evidence of climate change includes ecosystem change/transition, such as trees and shrubs moving into the Arctic tundra, pond pine forests dying along the coast of North Carolina, and major fisheries moving to higher latitudes.
true
Negative feedback loops generally promote stability in socio-ecological systems
true
Organic matter that decomposes under anaerobic conditions releases methane
true
Radiative forcing agents that have negative values in Wm-2 would tend to lower temperatures on Earth
true
Reliable records of air temperature measurements go back about 200 years. To estimate temperatures older than 200 years we have to use proxies that allow us to estimate temperature from them. Examples of proxies include stomata in fossil leaves and tree rings
true
Sunspots are one type of climate forcing agent
true
T/F--Eastern NC has the climate type named "Humid Subtropical"
true
T/F-A major cause of sea level rise is the water is expanding on warming
true
T/F-When glaciers formed the CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere were low
true
Temperature anomalies are used because temperatures at individual stations in a region may not be representative of the temperatures in a whole region, but the changes over time at that station are likely to track the changes throughout the region
true
The downward flux (amount) of infrared radiation from the atmosphere is about twice as high as incoming sunlight to the earth
true
Water vapor can be considered the strongest greenhouse gas because it aborbs more wavelengths of light than any other gas.
true
Water vapor in the atmosphere absorbs more wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation than does carbon dioxide
true
