Global Climate Change

What was the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere for hundreds of thousands of years?

200-300 parts per million

What was the warmest decade ever recorded?

2001-2010

What is the hottest year on record?

2015

How much carbon dioxide have humans released into the atmosphere since the mid-1770s?

305 billion tons

How many Native Alaskan villages have been declared imminently threatened by climate change?

31

What is the current concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere?

400 parts per million

What percentage of the carbon dioxide emissions from humans have occurred since the 1970s?

50%

Why is cement in the carbon cycle diagram?

the production of cement is extremely energy intensive, meaning that it requires a lot of fossil fuels

How does carbon dioxide move IN to oceans?

update from atmosphere, photosynthesis performed by marine plants

How does carbon dioxide move OUT of the atmosphere?

uptate from the ocean

the more greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the ___________ it will be

warmer

example 4 of positive feedback loop

warmer temperatures - heat stress in boreal forests - trees perform lower rates of photosynthesis - more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere - warmer temperatures

give an example of a positive feedback loop

warmer temperatures - melting glaciers - water runoff- water undercuts glaciers - melting glaciers

example 2 of positive feedback loop

warmer temperatures - melting polar ice - more absorption of solar radiation - warmer temperatures

example 3 of positive feedback loop

warmer temperatures - warmer water - melting ice shelf - more ice exposed to more water - more melting ice shelf

What is carbon reversal?

carbon sinks switching to carbon sources

What are some natural causes of climate change?

changes in Earth's orbit, the amount of energy coming from the sun, oceanic changes, volcanic eruptions

What are some examples of fossil fuels?

coal and oil

permafrost

earth that remains frozen for much or all of the year; found in arctic regions

carbon store

emits more carbon than it absorbs

arctic amplification

greater warming near the poles (2-3 times more than rest of the planet)

What happens BEFORE the infrared radiation escapes into space?

greenhouse gases in the atmosphere absorb some of it, making the atmosphere and the earth warmer

What happens when permafrost that has been frozen for thousands of years thaws out?

it releases methane and carbon dioxide, but it also performs higher rates of photosynthesis

Which season(s) do forests absorb more carbon dioxide?

late spring/summer

How does carbon dioxide move OUT of soil?

microbial respiration and decomposition

What is the biggest carbon sink?

ocean

How does carbon dioxide move IN to plant biomass?

photosynthesis

How does carbon dioxide move OUT of oceans?

respiration from marine life, decomposition

How does carbon dioxide move IN to the atmosphere?

respiration, decomposition

How does carbon dioxide move OUT of plant biomass?

respiration, decomposition

When frozen, permafrost is an enormous carbon __________.

sink

What type of energy does the earth get from the sun?

solar radiation

What happens to the solar radiation the earth gets from the sun?

some is reflected by the atmosphere and earth's surface and some is absorbed by the earth's surface which makes it heat up

What does the hockey stick graph illustrate?

temperature over the past 1,000 years reconstructed using paleoclimatology with a significant increase in temperatures in the 20th century (published in 1999).

How does carbon dioxide move IN to soil?

terrestrial uptake

What historical event is linked to humans beginning to dig up and burn large amounts of fossil fuels?

the Industrial Revolution

What would happen without the green house effect?

the earth would be a very cold, unlivable place

What is the greenhouse effect?

the natural process of greenhouse gases trapping heat in the atmosphere

What determines a region's climate?

Natural elements include the atmosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere.

How much has the overall global temperature risen on average over the past 100 years?

0.8 degrees Celcius (1.4 degrees Fahrenheit)

What are two feedback loops resulting from thawing of permafrost?

1. warmer temperatures - thawing permafrost on Earth's surface and lake bottoms - release of methane - warmer temperatures 2. warmer temperatures - thawing permafrost - release of carbon dioxide via respiration and decomposition - warmer temperatures

How are weather and climate interrelated?

A change in one weather element often produces changes in the others, and over time this can shape a region's climate. For example, if the average temperature over a region increases significantly, it can affect cloudiness as well as the type and amount of precipitation. If these changes occur over long periods of time, the average climate values will also be affected.

Which greenhouse is the most abundant one produced by people's activities?

Carbon dioxide

Temperature changes have been linked to what compound?

Carbon dioxide (CO2)

Increases in what greenhouse gases have caused these rising temperatures?

Carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide

What parts of the world are the biggest sources of carbon dioxide emissions?

China, US, Europe, India

What human communities are being affected by these changes in climate?

Native Alaskan communities and other indigenous peoples throughout the arctic

How can humans influence natural elements and cause global climate change?

Humans have altered the biosphere vis deforestation, the hydrosphere via impervious surfaces and stormwater runoff, the geosphere vis mining and extraction of underground natural resources, and of course the atmosphere via air pollution

What are some examples of trustworthy sources of data on climate change?

NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Sciences and NOAA

Why "Climate Change" and not "Global Warming"?

It's about more than rising temperatures (i.e., warming). The overall warming climate is causing other changes, such as shifts in precipitation patterns, as well as cooling in some areas of the world. It's more complex than simply warming.

How may excess warming impact tree species like boreal forests?

Lower the rate of photosynthesis and increase carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

How does carbon move through plants?

Plants take in carbon dioxide and store the carbon in their leaves, stems and roots. When the plant dies, this carbon is converted to soil organic matter. Ultimately it's mineralized to carbon dioxide and returned to the atmosphere.

What are the two villages that have voted to relocate because they are falling into the sea?

Shishmaref and Newtok, Alaska

Weather

Short-term, current atmospheric conditions, chaotic, almost impossible to predict, we can see it; includes temperature, precipitation, cloud cover, humidity, wind, etc.

What is the critique of the hockey stick graph?

That the hockey stick shape was the result of faulty statistical method and only one proxy record. As a result, the recent increase in temperature is actually not statistically significant.

Climate

The long-term average of weather over a number of years; patterns and trends; predictability

How are the ozone layer and climate change related?

The ozone layer and climate change are NOT connected -- the depletion of the ozone layer is not a cause of climate change.

Paleoclimatology

The study of past climates, using ice cores, tree rings, coral, and sediment layers.

How has the critique of the hockey stick graphy been disproven?

The study's original results have been confirmed by a variety of statistical techniques. Numerous independent reconstructions of past temperatures have shown the same result that the warming trend over the past few decades is unprecedented.

What is climate change?

When the typical climate for a region has changed significantly, and new kinds of weather extremes and patterns occur. This could be a long-term change in Earth's average temperature, for example. Or it could be a change in Earth's typical precipitation patterns.

How does land use change like deforestation, urbanization, and agriculture contribute to increasing carbon dioxide?

When vegetation and land is disturbed, the stored carbon dioxide is emitted into the atmosphere.

Is it normal for climate to change?

Yes. Earth's climate is always changing. In the past, Earth's climate has gone through warmer and cooler periods, each lasting thousands of years.

anomoly

a deviation from the norm

positive feedback loop

a reinforcing pattern

carbon sink

absorbs more carbon than it gives off

albedo

amount of solar radiation reflected by a surface

What is the biggest carbon source?

burned fossil fuels

How does the earth coll down?

by giving off a different form of energy called infrared radiation

What compound is released by forest fires in summer months?

carbon monoxide