ch. 7 reading quiz

a gradual increase in the overall temperature of the earth's atmosphere generally attributed to the greenhouse effect caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide, chlorofluorocarbons, and other pollutants.

Global warming is ___

Other proxies comparing proxies using satellites to investigate temperature changes

How can we measure climate change?

1. Tropical Rain Forest (Af)- lush vegetation, and streams carry large volumes of water 2. Tropical Monsoon (Am)- exceeds the needs of vegetation , excess precipitation stored in the soil during these months allows rain forests to survive a few relatively dry months, vegetation becomes slightly shorter and sparser compared to Af 3. Tropical Savanna (Aw)- Wet-dry climate because Half year receives abundant precipitation and the other half is very dry. Dry season is too long to support forests because soil is dried, vegetation is grassland with scattered short, wide trees, such as acacia trees

How does precipitation differ between the 3 types of tropical climates?

Köppen's classification is based on a subdivision of terrestrial climates into five major types, which are represented by the capital letters A, B, C, D, and E. Each of these climate types except for B is defined by temperature criteria. A- Tropical B- Arid C- Temperate Mid-Latitude D- Harsh Mid-Latitude E- Polar

How is the Koppen Classification System Organized?

1. cyclone formation - warmer sea and land surfaces are likely to affect atmospheric stability and cause changes to upper-level circulation 2. frequency of tropical storms increase 3. frequency of tornados

How might climate change promote severe weather?

The Clean Air Act of 1963 is a United States federal law designed to control airpollution on a national level. It is one of the United States' first and most influential modern environmental laws, and one of the most comprehensive air quality laws in the world.

The Clean Air Act

land areas and generally depicted as a map covering a large area and portraying the regional or global distributions of different climate types how different climates relate to regional atmospheric features, like high pressure in the subtropics.

The Koppen Climate Classification was defined for ____

Climate change feedback is important in the understanding of global warming because feedbackprocesses may amplify or diminish the effect of each climate forcing, and so play an important part in determining the climate sensitivity and future climatestate.

The importance of feedbacks in climate models

1. Hot desert (BWh) 2. Cold Desert (BWk) 3. Hot Steppe (BSh) 4. Cold Steppe (BSk)

The various types of B Arid climates

1. Marine West Coast 2. Humid Continental 3. Influence of the Westerlies

What affects precipitation in Non-Arid Mid-Latitude Climates?

They are affected by subtropical highs, like the Bermuda-Azores High in the north Atlantic and the South Atlantic High. When high pressure areas are strong and nearby, they suppress the formation of clouds and precipitation. Precipitation can occur more easily when the highs are father away and when they are weaker

What affects precipitation in Temperate Climates?

In temperate climates, not only do latitudinal positions influence temperature changes, but sea currents, prevailing wind direction, continentality (how large a landmass is), and altitude also shape temperate climates.

What affects temperatures in temperate climates?

General circulation models they capture the flows of air and water in the atmosphere and/or the oceans, as well as the transfer of heat.

What are GCM's and how do they approach climate problems?

A feedback is the way a system responds to a change in conditions, which in turn acts to amplify or dampen that change. Positive- amplifies those changes (causes more change in the same direction) Negative- drives the system in the opposite direction, undoing some or all of the changes Examples with Changes to Surface

What are positive and negative feedbacks?

-Glaciers -desertification - increase in global temps -distribution of communities of plants and animals, -increase precipitation

What are some consequences of climate change to the environment?

- Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) - Sulfer Dioxide (SO2) -Carbon monoxide (CO) The climate influences temperatures, cloudiness, humidity, the frequency and intensity of precipitation, and wind patterns, each of which can influence air quality.

What are some hazardous Pollutants? and typical sources

1. Tropical Rain Forest (Af) 2. Tropical Monsoon (Am) 3. Tropical Savanna (Aw)

What are the 3 types of A-Climates in the Koppen System

(A,B,C,D,E) I live C- temperate mid-latitude

What are the patterns of different climates at the scale of the entire planet and then focus on a single continent or part of continent. What is the label for the place where you live?

They occur mostly in subtropical latitudes 1. Humid Subtropical 2. Mediterranean 3. Temperate Monsoon

What causes Warm Temperate climates and what the the 3 types?

frigid temperatures and low precipitation totals, occur at high latitudes in both northern and Southern Hemispheres, group E

What causes subarctic and polar climates?

Koppen climate classification- Patterns of colors correlate with latitude, evolution, proximity to the ocean and other aspects of position within the continent. Vladmir Koppen was a botanist interested in the global distribution of vegetation types. He surmised that the annual temperature and precipitation regimes determined the types of natural vegetation.

What climate classification system is most widely used and why is it useful?

B- desert and steppe climates with the distinction being that deserts are more arid that steppes potential evapotranspiration is taken into account, in addition to precipitation; an area is classified as arid only if precipitation does not offset the potential loss of water through evaporation from the surface and transpiration through leaf surfaces

What conditions cause Arid Climates?

Arid is considered to have a desert climate. There is virtually no rainfall all year long in Arid. Sun is high so insolation arrives nearly perpendicular to the surface Lack clouds and precipitation due to little to none evaporation of moisture

What controls temperatures in arid climates?

1. limitations in solar heating 2. atmospheric circulation

What controls the temp. regime in subarctic and polar climates?

f- wet all year round s- dry summer w- dry winter m-experiences monsoon

What do the lowercase letters mean? f,s,w,m

Comparing the different types of data strengthens the case that global warming has occurred since the mid-1800s The NAS concluded that earths atmosphere has warmed .6 C in the last 100 years

What does comparing proxies tell us about climate change?

1. Descending Air along the subtropics 2. Rain Shadow 3. Cold Ocean Currents 4. Distance to the Ocean

What factors contribute to the lack of precipitation in Arid Climates?

Trees become shorter and more widely spaces from climate Af (Rain forest) to Am (monsoon) to Aw (Savanna)

What happens to trees in the different A climates

Air pollution is caused by solid and liquid particles and certain gases that are suspended in the air. These particles and gases can come from car and truck exhaust, factories, dust, pollen, mold spores, volcanoes and wildfires. The solid and liquid particles suspended in our air are called aerosols.

What is air. pollution and what are its causes?

Cities who have greater human population are warmer due to buildings and more human activity

What is an urban heat island? What causes one to develop?

Climate change occurs when changes in Earth's climate system result in new weather patterns that remain in place for an extended period of time.

What is climate change?

Climates are classified to let us observe broad patterns and to simplify communication about the characteristics of a region Colors and patterns

What is the purpose of classifying climates and how do we classify them?

-consistently warm temps all year -precipitation is caused by the convergence of the trade winds along the Intertropical Convergence Zone, which shifts with the season to locations north and south of the equator

What is the setting of tropical climates?

Earths surface temps are dominated by energy from the Sun. Insolation heats the oceans, land, and atmosphere but several factors influence how much of this energy reaches the surface an dhow much is retained.

What processes influence atmospheric temperature change?

the marine west coast in found in the upper middle west latitude over or near oceans at moderately high latitudes like near Canada when the humid continental is found in the east upper middle coast latitude, only occupy the interior of continents but only in the northern hemisphere

Where are Marine West Coast and Humid Continental Climates found?

The way the Sun interacts with our tilted planet

Why are temperatures consistent throughout the year in A-types climates?

Human- ozone pollution Climate- acid rain

how does climate and human geography affect air pollution