Climate Science Study Guide
What are the five spheres of the Earth's System?
Biosphere, Atmosphere, Geosphere, Cryosphere, and Hydrosphere.
What are some ways the spheres interact with each other?
1. Volcanoes give off CO2 which goes from the Geosphere to the Atmosphere. 2. Water freezes which becomes ice, snow, glaciers, and permafrost which goes from the Hydrosphere to the Cyrosphere. 3. Living things drink water which goes from the hydrosphere to the biosphere. 4. Decomposition gives off CO2 which is the Geosphere.
How much energy must leave the earth to maintain an equilbrium?
235 w/m of the energy entering and leaving is how much energy needs to leave the earth to maintain an equilbrium.
How much energy enters the earth?
About 71% of the total incoming solar energy is absorbed in the Earth's system and 29% is deflected.
What is Global Warming Potential?
Global warming is used to compare the abilities of different greenhouse gases to trap the atmosphere. Carbon Dioxide is used as the base for all the calculations, so global warming potential is 1.2. The higher the GWP, the more heat the specific gas can keep in the atmosphere.
What are the main gases of the atmosphere and their percentages?
Nitrogen which is 78%, Oxygen which is 21%, Argon which has 0.93%, and Carbon Dioxide which has 0.04%.
What is the Greenhouse Effect?
The Greenhouse Effect is when the sun's heat is trapped in the atmosphere because of the transparency of the atmosphere that is visible radiation from the sun than to the infrared radiation emitted from the planet's surface.
What is the Keeling Curve?
The Keeling Curve shows the ongoing change in the concentration of carbon dioxide in Earth's atmosphere since the 1950s. It is a graph created by Charles Davis Keeling, the measurements are taken in Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii. It shows the atmospheric CO2 levels increasing at a faster rate each year. The CO2 is gradually increasing because of fossil fuels.
What is an equilbrum in terms of the earth's Energy Budget?
The equilibrium is the balance of the earth's energy budget, the energy comes from the sun and the energy that radiates back into outer space after being deflected and distributed throughtout the five spheres of the Earth's climate system.
What is radiative forcing?
The graph shows the annual greenhouse gases rising starting in 1980 and ending in 2015. By 1990 the greenhouse gas reached the index of 1.0/ It also shows the warming increasing in watts per square meter. In 2015, it was a little pass 2.3 watts per square meter.
How do these numbers relate to the earth's energy budget and the equilbrium?
This graph shows the annual rise in the greenhouse gases which the data can decrease the risks it has on the Earth and the atmosphere. We can use the data to balance out Earth;s energy and create a healthy equilibrium.
List the main Greenhouse gases in order of importance?
Water Vapor, Oxygen, Methane, and Carbon Dioxide.
