Earth Science B: Climate Change Over Time

Select the correct answer from the list.

Between 400,000 years ago until 1950, the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere never exceeded ______ parts per million. Today, carbon dioxide levels have exceeded ______ parts per million. 300, 410

What evidence supports the argument that today's climate change is different from natural climate change of the past?

Carbon dioxide has reached the highest levels in record history; current increases in carbon dioxide are due to humans; the rate of change is faster than in the past.

Drag the item to the correct location.

Earth's most recent glacial period ended about 11,500 years ago. The Great Oxygenation Event began about 2.3 billion years ago. About 160 years ago carbon dioxide began increasing exponentially to unprecedented levels.

Drag each item to the correct location.

True • climate has changed naturally over Earth's history. • Earth is currently in an interglacial period. False • atmospheric composition has remained constant throughout Earth's history. • The increase in carbon dioxide since the year 1860 is similar to past increases.

interglacial period

a period in Earth's history marked by prolonged high global temperature

glacial period

a period in Earth's history marked by prolonged low global temperature

Feedback

ability of change in a system to lead to further changes.

Match each natural cause of climate change to the timescale over which it occurs.

volcanic eruptions • 1-10 years solar output • thousands of years changes to Earth's axis & orbit • thousands of years human activity • 10-100 years