Enviro test 3

ENSO

El niño southern oscillation A representation of the different temperatures that the Southern pacific ocean can be in different areas. Goes from la nina (South America is very cold), normal conditions, and el nino (South America is kinda warm) This is always in the southern pacific ocean It depends on the wind strength (more wind = colder temps on West coast of South Ameica) Fishing yields are much better during la niña conditions, because the stronger winds bring up the cold water, but more importantly the rich nutrients. These nutrients allow tons of food to be there.

How heat works

Energy is received from the sun in shortwave energy. Then the Earth re-radiates the energy as outgoing long-wave heat. This means that the farther you are from the Earth, the less energy you receive, because heat comes from the Earth's atmosphere.

Atmospheric Window

Incoming radiation - most energy is brought into the Earth Outgoing radition - lots of leaving energy is blocked by GHGs (Greenhouse gasses) At some wavelengths, no gases can prevent solar energy from leaving

Carbon Dioxide Solubility Feedback Loop

As temperature rises, the solubility of carbon dioxide in water decreases. Since less carbon dioxide is in water, there is more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, so temperatures rise (positive feedback loop).

Water Vapor Feedback Loop

As temperatures rise, more water evaporates. Water is a greenhouse gas and therefore further increases temperature (positive feedback loop).

Rain Shadow Effect

One side of the mountain gets lots of rain (the side with the ocean or body of water) because the air must ascend to get over the mountain, and as clouds go up, the moisture is squeezed out of them so they continue to rain and once they get to the other side, the have nothing and that land is desert. Ex. Atacama desert

Npp in boreal forest ex.

growth in a plant that is accessible to the next trophic level. For a tropical forest it would be like oranges or bananas because they are production that the next trophic level can use.

Where does cold water vs. hot water come from?

hot water comes from the equator and cold water comes more from the poles.

Meandering Rossby Waves

jet stream something...

Solstice

know definition

Know lots of examples of many biomes

like everglades in Florida as a swamp. Great park (in NJ)

Climate

the 'average' weather over the long term (e.g. years) often at a regional level.

Angle of incidence

the angle at which the sun strikes the earth. This determines how impactful the heat is.

Topography

the shape of the land, mountains, altitude, and aspect. Specifically, it deals with the impact these features have on the climate.

Polar cell

Air that moves from the Ferrel cell to the Polar cell, rises and continues moving towards the pole. As the air cools it descends, creating a high pressure region and some of the air moves back towards the equator forming the polar fronts that meet the Ferrel cell (at about 60°N or 60°S).

Revolution info

Revolving around the sun creates the seasons. Determines when a different region will have the most sun per day or the least.

Desert Detailed View

* any area of the world which receives less than 250 mm of precipitation per year. Formed by; descending air, rain-shadow effect, cold-ocean currents (areas close by this coast would get no moisture), and continentally (where all moisture was lost by the air) Types; Hot (Sahara) & Cold (Antartica) Precipitation; very little (must be less than 250 mm/10 inches of precipitation per year) Temperature; around 38 degrees celsius in hot desert, Productivity; very bad (less than 200 Kcal/m^2/yr) Limiting Factors; nearly all resources are limited in the desert (soil nutrients, water...) Common animals/plants; acacia trees, cacti, shrubs, foxes, antelopes, cheetahs, lizards. Problems; everything (hunting, climate change, but mainly it is inhospitable)

Tri-Cellular Model of Amospheric Circulation

Basic idea; the sun heats up the Earth and it can affect the Earth and climate here in many ways.

Lapse Rate

For every 100 meters gained in altitude, the temp decreases by 1 degree celsius The relation between temperature and altitude

What kind of air stimulates precipitation

Low pressure rising air forms precipitation because as the air rises the moisture leaves.

Doldrums

area with no wind b/c no pressure

Tilt of the Earth

changes over 41,000 years Smaller tilt = less insolation at the poles for one revolution, the Earth is always tilted to the left (23.5) It changes between 22 and 24.5 (almost 3 degrees) over many thousands of years.

Name the geographic locations with different biomes

Deserts (sahara desert in Egypt) Savanas Forests (boreal forrest ex. Alaska or canada)

Extreme weather conditions in 2015

Drought - Brazil, USA (California), Australia Heatwave - Europe, Iran, Iraq, India, and Pakistan Intense Rainfall - Ghana, USA (Texas), Myanmar

Rotation info

Earth rotates on its axis once every 24 hours (creates day and night) At the equator, days and nights are about 12 hours all year round. At the poles, daylight can be 24 hours in summer and 0 hours in winter.

Precession

Earth wobbling on its axis. the slow, conical motion of the earth's axis of rotation, caused by the gravitational attraction of the sun and moon, and, to a smaller extent, of the planets, on the equatorial bulge of the earth.

Plant Photosynthesis feedback loop

If temperatures rise, photosynthesis happens more often. This is because as temps increase, enzymes in plants more often and so reactions happen quicker and more often, and so more photosynthesis happens. When more photosynthesis happens, there is less carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and more oxygen, so temperatures decrease (negative feedback loop)

Tremednous Variations

In the far north and far south there are trendmeously different temps in the summer vs. winter b/c they get no sun during winter and lots during summer.

Equinox

In the spring and the fall there is daylight savings, and the sun hits your location for the same time as the night time is up. Perfect equality.

Jet Streams & Roosby Waves

Jet streams push air over the surface of the earth at a high level of the atmosphere (9,000+ feet up) and they loop around the Earth. - They meander a bit (although they are mostly horizontal across the Earth, they weave a bit as they go through it). Roosby Waves - when jet streams push across Earth at a super high height, but they meander (slalom) as they go horizontally around the Earth. - Air south of them will be hot and air north of them will be cold.

Jet Streams & Rossby Waves

Jet streams push air over the surface of the earth at a high level of the atmosphere (9,000+ feet up) and they loop around the Earth. They meander a bit (although they are mostly horizontal across the Earth, they weave a bit as they go through it). Roosby Waves - when jet streams push across Earth at a super high height, but they meander (slalom) as they go horizontally around the Earth. Air south of them will be hot and air north of them will be cold.

Quensland Australia example

La niña caused flooding in South-East Australia. Stronger winds make el nino and la nina happen.

Coreolis effect

define it

How latitude affects heat on Earth from the sun

the smaller the degree of latitude, the more direct that sun rays hit the Earth. The higher the degree of latitude, the less direct the sun rays are when they hit that location, so the less warmth is received.

Revolution

the time it takes for the Earth to revolve around the sun (365)

Increasing Air Temperature

Air warmer > volume increase > density decrease > cloud rises

Categories of Biomes

Aquatic Freshwater (ponds, lakes, rivers) Marine (oceans, swamps) Forrest (tropical rainforest, boreal, taiga) Grassland (savana, temperate) Dessert (coastal, hot, cold) Tundra (arctic, alpine) - although in class he said it is part of the grasslands

Vertical Zonation

Change of vegetation due to enviromental gradient. The biome changes (ie. less plants the higher you go up a mountain) when altitude increases. Ex. Mount Fugi, Japan b/c there are many biomes on that one biome

Zonation

Change of vegetation due to environmental gradient. The biome changes (ie. less plants the higher you go up a mountain) when altitude increases.

North Star

The north pole of the Earth is always pointing towards this star.

Biome

a collection of ecosystems that are classified according to their primary vegetation. They have similar climate conditions and species of animals.

Steppe biome

a temperate grassland synonym Ukraine is one of the top 5 producers of grain in the world because it is a steppe biome Called prairies and many other things across the world

Mediterranean Vegetation

also called chaparral In South Africa, Australia, and West Coast of US

Inter Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ)

an equatorial low-pressure zone (the place between the two Hadley cells that are almost exactly on the equator.

Geography affects net radiation

at 0 degrees latitude (straight towards sun), there is a high net radiation, wheras both ways to either side, there is less net radiation.

Upper Atmosphere phenomenon (between the convection cells)

between the hadley and ferrel cells, there is turbulence or the movement of air (called jet stream). A big ribbon of air that flows across the earth along like 30-45 latitude.

Net Radiation rankings

big wide incandescant heat lamps > incandescent regular light bulb > led light

Precession Cycle

changes over 26,000 (tens of thousands of) years The wobbling of the Earth on its axis, so like right now the Earth points left and up, whereas in the future it could point up to the right If the precession changes, then the seasons would change, because the seasons are determined by what part of the Earth is tilted to the sun at any part of the revolution.

Milankovitch Cycle

define it

Question, given climatogram (avg temp per month and precipitation) place it on map and label its biome

do this.

PAR (phosynthetically active radiation)

energy, like the sun has a much higher par than a lightbulb in a classroom

5 big areas of test

energy, zonation, biomes, convection, ENSO

Desert Condition

evaporation must be more than precipitation (P/E less than 1)

Tri-cellular model tips

explains how thermal energy is distributed around the planet. Rising air creates low pressure at the surface of the earth and high pressure in the troposphere. Sinking air creates high pressure at the surface of the earth (low pressure in the troposphere). Air moves from high pressure to low pressure. The spin of the earth deflects air movement to the right of its path of motion in the northern hemisphere and to the left in the southern hemisphere (coriolis force). This is shown in Figure 4 where none of the winds blow straight.

Atacama Desert formation

formed by the rain shadow effect The world's driest desert Formed by the rain going over the Andes mountains so they lose all moisture before they come over.

Biome Temp vs. Precipitation Graph

go to the slideshow and try to draw it without looking.

Eccentricity Cycle

over hundreds of thousands of years, the Earth changes its eccentricity. The smaller the eccentricity value, the more eccentric the ellipse is If there is greater ecencitricty of the Earth in its eclipse orbit, then...: less insolation is received by the earth (by minal amounts, 0.18%)

Weather

refers to the conditions over a short time scale (e.g. day to day) at a local level.

How wind forms

rising heat in some areas causes differences in pressure which cause wind.

Gersmehl diagrams

size of the arrows and stores are proportional to the size of the nutrients. Just circles for stores and arrows for flows and size correlates to amount.

What factors differ as you increase/decrease latitude?

temperature, precipitation, and sunlight.

Cloud cover feedback loop

there are two options for how clouds can affect climate (depends on optical properties, temperature, and the height of clouds) Negative feedback tends to dominate in low clouds that reflect some of the incoming solar radiation back into space increasing heat loss and causing global cooling. Positive feedback tends to dominate in high cloud cover that acts as a blanket retaining heat radiated from the earth's surface which increases the temperature.

Rain shadow effect

when there is lots of rain on one side of the mountain and no precipitation on the other side. Three necessary conditions - a body of water, wind coming from that direction onto the shore, and a high mountain or hill that blocks the wind from going past. The mountain range will force air to rise over it, and as air rises it expands and cools. Cool air olds less moisture so it condenses to form clouds and it will rain or snow. Once over the mountain range, the air flows down the other side and as it does it compresses and warms. Leeward side is the one you see once you get over the mountain. Wind ward side is the vegetation-full side.

Precipitation/Evaporation (P/E)

PE below 1 means there are water shortages (desert) PE of 1 means good soil moisture (crops can grow) PE above 1 means waterlogged or heavily moisturized areas. (swamp, tropical rainforest)

Upwelling

Prevailing winds (from mountains) push water away from the coast and then cold nutrient ruch water from the bottom of trenches in the ocean rises up. Mountain is Andes Peru-Chile Trenches Provide the upwelling of deep cold nutrient rich water Results - this makes the water next to the South America coast line very cold, but also nutrient rich.

Productivity of Biomes ranked

Productivity in general per biome; Open ocean, tropical rainforest, temperate forest, savana, taiga, agricultural land, temperate grassland, shrubland, swamps, desert, tundra, extreme desert. Open ocean gets unlimited sun, and it Productivity for every biome per every meter squared; Swamps/marshes, tropical rainforest, estuaries, temperate forest, taiga, savana, agricultural farmland, shubland, temperate grassland, ocean, tundra, desert. Here swamps/marshes win big and the ocean is much lower because it is per area. Estuaries Life in an estuary | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Draw a tri-cellular Model

Rainforests near equator Hot deserts at 30 degrees north and south Forests occur at 60 degrees north and south Cold dessert at 90 degrees north and south

Meandering River

A river in a snake shape, like slaloming side to side

Latitudinal trends

Tundra only occurs in the northern hemisphere Tropical forest occur all the way across the equator

Convection Mechanism

1. Sun's energy heats the ground surface, 2. the warmed ground heats the air, 3, warm air rises, 4. rising air cools, 5. cool air sinks. Convection ovens have a fan that moves the heat all around the oven. When the air gets warmer, the volume increases, so the density decreases, so the cloud rises more. This same process happens but in the reverse (when the cloud gets to a certain point it cools down and loses volume, gains density, and sinks). Pressure; the air coming back down has very high pressure, whereas the warm air going up has low pressure. Temp & Altitude relations; as altitude increases, temperature decreases (lapse rate) Altitude & Moisture relations; as air rises (altitude increases), moisture decreases

Names for 23.5 degrees North and South

23.5 degrees north = tropic of cancer 23.5 degrees south = tropic of capircorn Any tropical country is between the two lines. Brazil's southern border is the southernmost part of the tropics.

Forests Detailed View

80% of the Earth's biomass & 75% of the Earth's primary productivity Types Boreal Forests (near the poles with lots of evergreen trees) Temperate Forests (mid latitudes with mixed woodlands and tree types) Tropical Forests (near the equator with broadleaf tropical evergreen trees) Precipitation; lots Temperature; not too cold, not too warm Productivity; very high Limiting Factors; limited sunlight because of trees & winter season stops productivity Stores; soil, litter (trees shed many leaves), biomass (vegetation & animals) Flows; uptake (soil > trees), decomposition, fallout (woody vegetation like leaves) Inputs/Outputs; weathering and precipitation bring in nutrients, whereas leaching and runoff carry out nutrients. Layers; Canopy Layer (tall trees that block out sunlight), Shrub Layer (low standing vegetation), Herb Layer (grasses and flowers), Ground Layer (moss and lichens)

Hadley cell

As air is heated at the equator, it rises and cools with altitude which stops it rising further. As the air moves towards the pole it is deflected (by Coriolis force caused by the rotation of the earth) towards the right in the northern hemisphere and towards the left in the southern hemisphere. The air becomes cooler and therefore denser, leading to it falling at about 30°N or 30°S of the equator. Some air is transferred back to the equator, replacing rising air and some continues on its journey towards the pole. This divergence of descending air leads to a subtropical high pressure region associated with sunny and dry conditions.

Permafrost Feedback Loop

As temperature rises, more permafrost melts. Permafrost contains methane, so when they melt, they release methane and the temperature increases (positive feedback loop).

Ice Melting Feedback Loop

As temperatures rise, more Ice melts. Since Ice reflects as Albedo, temperatures are kept low because the solar radiation is reflected. So when the Ice melts, there is more solar radiation absorbed and temperature rises (positive feedback loop).

Ferrel cell

As the air moves from the Hadley cell towards the pole, it enters the Ferrel cell where it picks up moisture as it crosses the sea. At about 60°N or 60°S this warm air meets cold air from the pole called the polar front and is forced upwards creating a region of low pressure associated with high rainfall. The rising air is divided with some moving back to the equator and the rest continuing toward the pole.

Factors that affect our climate from within the Earth

Atmospheric and ocean circulation systems. Greenhouse gases that trap heat and warm the land, oceans and atmosphere. Volcanic activity. Feedback cycles.

Biome diversity in countries

Australia and USA have the most diversity with 6 different biomes. Brazil and Russia have some diversity as well.

El niño

Climate in one part of the world can influence climate in another region via atmospheric and ocean circulation systems. For example El Niño events in the equatorial Pacific Ocean influence weather and climate in North America and Europe. Normally in the absence of El Niño In the Western Pacific Ocean, high surface water temperatures cause water to evaporate resulting in development of low pressure. This leads to heavy rainfall over East Asia and Eastern and Northern parts of Australia. In the Eastern Pacific Ocean upwellings bring cold deep waters to the surface, lowering the surface water temperature resulting in high pressure. Offshore winds from South America, (blowing from land to sea) further contribute to dry weather conditions in this region. This difference in atmospheric pressure between the Western and Eastern Pacific ocean results in air moving from the East (high pressure, descending warm air) to the West (low pressure, rising air). During El Niño the air flow and ocean currents change direction. El Nino events develop when Warm surface water in the Western Pacific Ocean extends further eastwards and the resulting warmer temperature in the Eastern Pacific Ocean creates lower pressure above South America. The rising moist air results in greater rainfall in the region increasing the risk of flooding. Air flows from the Western Pacific Ocean (high pressure, descending air) to the Eastern Pacific Ocean (low pressure, rising air). The air mass in the west is now drier and East Asia and Australia experience less rainfall with the possibility of drought occurring. Results - A change in water temperature and surface winds in the Eastern Pacific results in a decline in upwelling which Contributes to an increase in surface water temperatures. Reduces nutrients released from deep waters, adversely affecting primary production and fisheries.

Latent Heat

Latent means hidden, because as you breathe and release heat, the energy is lost in the atmosphere. As altitude increases, moisture decreases. Higher air is drier, lower altitude air is more moist and humidity is higher. It is condensation (H2O (g) > H2O (l) + Heat (cal/g) Exothermic reaction; energy is released

Climate Change affecting Biomes

Most affected by climate change; the tundra gaining some heat would mean it would become a forest or grassland. It would lose the unique property of permafrost. Different Biomes will gain more land and some biomes will shrink.

Movement of ITCZ

The Inter Tropical Convergence Zone. The Hadley cells are always around the equator, but they shift a bit over the year. The ITCZ is the barrier between the two center haddley cells, so if the cells shift down, then the ITCZ shifts down, and if the hadley cells shift up then the ITCZ shifts up.

Factors that affect our climate from outside the Earth

Solar radiation emitted from the sun. Tilting and orbit of the earth.

4 Critical times of the year

Spring Equinox (March 21-22) - incoming solar energy equal in both hemispheres. Summer Solstice (June 21-22) - incoming solar energy greatest in northern hemisphere. Autumn Equinox (Sep. 22-23) - incoming solar energy equal in both hemispheres. Winter Solstice (Dec. 21-22) - incoming solar energy greatest in southern hemisphere.

Earth's Orbit around the Sun

The Earth goes around the sun in an oval orbit, and this allows for the eccentricity (distance from center to orbiting object and center to one of the focal points).

Describe Rotations and Revolutions & impacts

The Earth rotates on its own axis, where it revoolves around the sun. The rotation creates day and night (since part of the Earth always faces the sun) The revolution on the tilted axis creates seasons. The combination of revolving and rotating creates varying day lengths.

What biome is the north pole?

The arctic north pole is just sheets of ice, not a biome b/c it does not have a land mass. It is not a tundra or cold desert for that reason.

Milankovitch cycle

The combination of axial tilt, procession, and eccentricity is the milankovitch cycle. Basically, how the Earth's movements affect the climate over a long period of time. It also contributes to the cycle of glacial and interglacial periods of the Earth (Ice age vs. now).

Aspect

The direction in which the slope faces. This has a big impact on the climate and vegetation, because one side of the mountain will face the sun and the other will not.

Maritime Effect (oceans...)

The great ocean conveyor belt moves heat around the planet, moderates the global climates, and is responsible for supplying heat to the polar regions. Gulf Stream - a warm current that travels from the gulf of mexico up the northwestern coast of Europe and makes the climate of the area up to 4 degrees warmer. Humboldt Current - a cold current which flows up the coast of South America and has a cooling effect on the climate of the area. It is also responsible for the dry coastal climates of the area and Atacama desert.

Mountains and Altitude Effect

The higher you ascend, the lower the temperature. Places with higher altitudes will be cooler.

The Hadley Cell Impact on climate

The rising air at the ITCZ creates a band of high rainfall and regular thunderstorms characteristic of the tropical rainforests e.g. Amazonia. Clouds block some of the sunlight causing a slight drop in temperatures. As the air descends over the subtropics it warms. Descending air is very stable and dry, hence the large deserts areas e.g. Sahara. Clear skies mean very high temperatures (higher than tropical rainforests). The shifting of the thermal equator moves the ITCZ and the low and high-pressure zones slightly creating the tropical rainforest, the savanna and the desert climates. The tropical rainforest is always under the influence of the ITCZ and thus always experiences high rainfall. The desert always sits under the falling limb of the Hadley cell creating hot dry conditions. The savanna experiences the influence of both. In June when the Hadley cells moves into the northern hemisphere the ITCZ delivers the savanna rains. Then in December the shift of the ITCZ takes the rains to the southern savannas.

Grassland Detailed View

Types; Tropical Grasslands (savannas such as African savanna) Temperate Grasslands (ex. North American prairies) Tundra Precipitation; lots in wet season and very little during dry season Temperature; warm-hot throughout the year Productivity; not great, kinda mediocre (40 billion Kcal/yr) Limiting Factors; soils lack nutrients (b/c of high rainfall or no rainfall), bodies of water dry up causing plants/animals to migrate, and wildfires are common. Common animals; reptiles, frogs, snakes, lots of birds Problems; weeds are out-competing native grasses, fires are common, humans clear lots of land for cattle grazing.

Normal year

There are very different temps. In western pacific vs. eastern pacific The west coast of South America is very cold (water from south pole) vs. East coast of Australia is very warm (water from equator) South America is so cold on West coast b/c of combo effect of deep trench which has cold water brought to surface and south pole water brought in.

The Ferrel cell

This is a slightly odd cell in that it appears to defy the laws of physics - it has rising air in cooler regions and sinking air in the warmer latitudes. All you really need to know is that the Ferrel cell is the average motion of air in the mid-latitudes and that it creates the mid-latitude westerlies.

The Polar cell

This is another simple, thermally driven cell. Mid latitude regions (around 60°N and S) are the starting point for this cell. Warm air in the region rises to the troposphere where it tracks poleward and cools. Cooling in this cell is extreme (some say it is the cold that drives this cell not the heat) and at the poles the air descends and dries creating high-pressure zones. Air then moves out from the poles as the Polar Easterlies. The high pressure creates stable conditions and clear skies. The polar cell acts as a very effective heat sink, the coldest temperatures on earth have been recorded in Antarctica (-89°C). This balances out the incoming solar radiation at the equator.

Volcanic Activity

Volcanoes can have short term effects on the climate. Emissions from volcanic activity include ash and gases such as sulphur dioxide. The latter reacts in the atmosphere forming a sulphate aerosol that reflects solar radiation back into space and causes global cooling.

Difference between Maritime and Continental Locations

Water takes a really long time to heat up or cool down, so in the summer when continental locations heat up quickly, maritime locations stay cooler. In the winter, continental locations cool very quickly whereas maritime locations stay a bit warmer. 2nd difference - there is a lot more moisture in the rainfall the coastal regions get. In contrast, the rainfall that continental regions get has lost most of its moisture.

Cycling

When air goes from high pressure to low pressure, it will get deflected in the northern hemisphere to the right & in the southern hemisphere to the left. Anti-cyclones would be going the opposite direction for the respective hemisphere. - low pressure systems go counter clockwise in the N hemisphere whereas clockwise in the S hemisphere. - low pressure systems cause cyclones & hurricanes. - high pressure systems (anti-cyclones) cause good weather - no storms