multiple choice

C)

Q11) Which one of these is not a source of atmospheric methane: A) rice paddies B) landfill C) volcanoes D) termites

B)

Q18) How do we measure the size of ice-sheets over the past five million years A) carbon isotopes of gases trapped in ice cores B) The d18O of foraminifera in deep sea sediments C) The d18O of ice cores D) to get back 5 million years we have to use computer modelling

C)

Q28) What major components to climate models have been added in the last 40 years? A) smaller grid size B) ocean circulation C) all of these D) interactive carbon and vegetation cycle

A)

Q1) Since 1990 the IPCC has released five major assessment reports. Which of the following are conclusions of these assessment reports? A) all of these are conclusions of the IPCC assessment reports B) Global average temperatures are increasing, rising 0.6 degrees C over the past 100 years C) Globally, ice and snow cover in polar and high mountain regions has decreased D) Greenhouse gases have accumulated in the atmosphere due to human activities

C)

Q10) What are the impacts of increasing water vapor in the atmosphere: A) the number of clouds increase, reflecting more sunlight B) the greenhouse effect is increased C) all of these D) heavier rainfall events

D)

Q12) What is the main source of atmospheric CFCs and HFCs: A) agricultural fertilizers B) fossil fuels C) burning plastic D) refrigerants

C)

Q13) By how much has the concentration of atmospheric CO2 increased since the start of the Industrial Revolution in the mid-19th century: A) 40 parts per billion B) 280 parts per million C) 125 parts per million D) 40 parts per million

A)

Q14) How do we know that the increase in CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere over the past 200 years is due to human activity associated with burning of fossil fuels: A) CO2 derived from fossil fuels leaves a distinct imprint on the stable isotope and B) all of these C) over the past 150 years there have been no other sources of CO2 to the atmosphere D) the pattern of CO2 and global temperatures over the past thousand years shows a perfect correlation in both timing and amplitude

B)

Q15) When put together, the variations in Earth's orbit strongly control the amount of incoming solar radiation that Earth's receives from the sun. As a result, we observe a close match between insolation predicted through Milankovitch Cycles, and:

B)

Q16) How much lower was sea-level during the last glacial maximum relative to today? A) 300m B) 120m C) 10m D) 50m

B)

Q17) Compared to the Holocene (last 10,000 years), the climate of the glacial period was: A) less variable B) more variable C) no change in variability D) it is not possible to estimate the variability of climate during the glacial

A)

Q19) What seems to be the control on whether ice sheets grow or melt A) the amount of summer ablation B) the amount of winter accumulation C) the latitude of the ice sheet D) the winter temperature

D)

Q2) Because the Earth is a sphere: A) solar radiation is only reflected back into space when the Sun is directly overhead B) all regions of the Earth's surface receive equal amounts of solar radiation C) there is no solar radiation received at either the North Pole or South Pole D) averaged annually, more solar radiation falls on the equator than at higher latitudes

D)

Q20) Records of global sea level show a pattern of lower sea during times of cooler global climate over the past several hundred thousand years. What is the interpreted mechanism for this? A) colder water is more dense than warmer water, so the oceans contract significantly when global air temperatures are cooler B) during colder climates, more water is stored in the atmosphere with less available to fill the oceans C) during colder climates there is significantly more storage of water in groundwater, leaving less water in the oceans D) during colder climates, snow and ice accumulate as glaciers and continental ice sheets, removing significant amounts of water from the oceans

B)

Q21) As a very broad and long-term generalization, global climate and CO2 concentrations: A) largely unrelated, as global climate appears random in the context of atmospheric CO2 B) largely show close coherence, with times of warmer climate characterized by higher CO2 C) inversely associated, with cooler global climates exhibiting higher CO2 concentrations D) track each other at almost a 1:1 rate over hundreds of millions of years

C)

Q22) What would happen if more young buoyant oceanic crust was produced at mid-ocean ridges? A) it would float, creating islands in the ocean B) Hot rocks would cause the ocean to expand, and sea-level to rise C) The oceans would get shallower, their volume would decrease and sea-levels would rise D) The oceans would get wider, their volume would increase and sea-levels would fall

C)

Q23) Over the last 130 years how does the trend of nighttime minimum temperatures over the continental United States compare to the trend of maximum daytime temperatures? A) Nighttime minima are increasing at a slower rate than daytime maxima B) The two are increasing at the same rate C) Nighttime minima are increasing at a faster rate than daytime maxima D) Only daytime maximum temperatures are increasing

B)

Q24) What has happened to the number of record low temperatures recorded in the US over the last 60 years? A) Record lows are increasing at the same rate as record highs B) The number of record lows is decreasing in ratio to the number of record highs C) We no longer get record low temperatures due to global warming D) The number of record lows is increasing due to cold air incursions from the arctic

D)

Q25) What is the trend in recorded hurricane numbers over the last 130 years A) We have no way of knowing about the number of hurricanes before the first satellites were launched B) The number of hurricanes is decreasing C) The number of hurricanes has shown no trend D) The number of hurricanes recorded has increased slightly, but we do not know yet if this is significant

D)

Q26) Global radiation balance is controlled in part by the Earth's albedo. What is albedo? A) the percent of incoming solar radiation reflected back to space without absorption B) an indication of the amount of land area covered by light-colored surfaces such as ice and snow C) a phenomenon that effectively reduces solar insolation absorbed by Earth's atmosphere, land areas and oceans D) all of these

B)

Q27) Sophisticated climate models divide the Earth's surface and atmosphere into a spherical grid in which energy, mass and momentum are balanced to provide information about temperature, water vapor, heat transfer, etc. Compared to the observational record of global temperatures since 1860 to today, climate model outputs for the same time period: A) show that models using natural forcings alone predict global temperatures that are similar to what has been actually observed B) best reflect the observed temperature history when both natural and anthropogenic forcings are used to drive global climate C) show that models using anthropogenic greenhouse gas forcings, without natural factors, predict temperatures that are similar to what has been actually observed D) are not currently capable of creating model outputs of global temperature

D)

Q29) What impact do human emitted aerosols have on global warming? A) They warm the planet, adding to the impacts of carbon dioxide B) They have caused the hole in the ozone layer, letting in more sunlight C) They have had little effect on the earth's climate D) They cool the planet, reducing the impact of global warming

B)

Q3) Why does the northern hemisphere receive less insolation in the winter: A) it is further away from the sun B) it is pointed away from the sun C) snow reflects the insolation back into space D) the sun's output varies over the course of a year

B)

Q30) What role have volcanoes played in global climate during the last 150 years? A) Volcanoes have negligible effect on global temperatures but can cause local cooling B) Volcanic aerosols act to cool the planet, but only last a few years, having a temporary impact on global temperatures C) Volcanic aerosols add long-live sulfates to the atmosphere, which cool the planet for centuries D) Volcanoes add lots of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, warming the planet

C)

Q4) What is the net transport of heat by oceanic and atmospheric circulation: A) Oceanic and atmospheric circulation has little impact on the global distribution of heat B) Oceanic and atmospheric circulation transports heat from the poles to the equator C) Oceanic and atmospheric circulation transports heat from the equator to the pole D) the oceans and atmospheres mix randomly

C)

Q5) The most abundant constituents of Earth's atmosphere include: A) gases such as water vapor (H2O), methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) B) none of these are abundant components of Earth's atmosphere C) gases such as nitrogen (N2), oxygen (O2) and argon (Ar) D) greenhouse gases such as nitrous oxide (N2O) and various chlorofluorocarbons

B)

Q6) The concept of black body radiation indicates that an objects emits electromagnetic radiation in a range of wavelengths determined by that object's temperature. Due to this, the Sun emits electromagnetic radiation at _______________, while the Earth emits electromagnetic radiation at ___________________: A) a range characteristic of a temperature of 200 degrees C; a range for a temperature of 100 degrees C B) shorter wavelengths including visible light; longer wavelengths mainly as infrared heat C) longer wavelengths mainly as infrared heat; shorter wavelengths including visible light D) low energy wavelengths such as radio rays; high energy wavelengths such as gamma rays

D)

Q7) Is the sun a black body? A) The sun's radiation does not approximate a black body at the same temperature B) The sun is yellow during the day and turns red at sunset C) Yes, it is a perfect black body D) The sun's radiation approximates that of a black body for practical purposes

C)

Q8) Greenhouse gases such as H2O, CO2, CH4 and CFCs are very effective at: A) converting visible light into infrared radiation B) none of the above are correct C) absorbing and re-emitting infrared radiation D) transmitting infrared radiation without absorption

A)

Q9) What would happen if we got rid of all the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere: A) the surface temperature of the planet would drop to below freezing almost everywhere B) the ozone hole would be repaired C) we would suffocate D) we would return to the pre-industrial era climate