Water, Carbon and Climate

Question 1

Why is carbon a fundamental part of life?

Answer 1

All living organisms contain carbon

Question 2

Why is water a fundamental part of life?

Answer 2

All living things need water to survive

Question 3

Why are plants the base of most food chains?

Answer 3

When photosynthesis occurs, they use energy from. the sun to convert CO2 and H2O into biomass that gets passed up the food chain

Question 4

What are the inputs of photosynthesis?

Answer 4

Water and Carbon

Question 5

How is water present in the atmosphere

Answer 5

As water vapour

Question 6

How is carbon present in the atmosphere

Answer 6

CO2 and methane (GREENHOUSE GASES)

Question 7

What do greenhouse gases do?

Answer 7

Cause a natural greenhouse effect that prevents some energy escaping into space and reflects it back to earth.Causing temperatures. on earth to be higher than they otherwise would be

Question 8

What would the earth be like without the greenhouse effect

Answer 8

It would be frozen and inhabitable

Question 9

What is the enhanced greenhouse effect?

Answer 9

Human activities are increasing the concentration of greenhouses gases.

Question 10

Explain the greenhouse effect

Answer 10

The additional greenhouse gases reflect more energy back to the. earth in the natural greenhouse effect, so temperature increases further. This is thought to be causing global warming and changes to the climate

Question 11

Give positive. feedback in the water cycle

Answer 11

• Temperature rises
• Evaporation increases
• Amount of water vapour in atmosphere increases
• Greenhouse effect increases

Question 12

Give negative feedback in the water cycle

Answer 12

• Temperature rises
• Evaporation increases
• Amount of water vapour in atmosphere increases, causing more clouds to. form
• Increased cloud cover reflects more of suns energy back into space
• Temperature falls

Question 13

Give positive. feedback in the carbon cycle

Answer 13

• Temperature rises
• Plant respiration rate increases
• Amount of CO2 in atmosphere increases
• Greenhouse effect increases

Question 14

Give negative feedback in the carbon cycle

Answer 14

• CO2 in atmosphere increases
• EXtra CO2 causes plants to increase growth
• Plants remove and store more CO2. from atmosphere
• Amount of CO2 in atmosphere reduces

Question 15

In these examples what would positive feedback cause?

Answer 15

Increase global warming because they’re amplifying the temperature rises

Question 16

In these examples what would negative feedback cause?

Answer 16

Cancel out the temperature increase, so global warming wouldn’t. increase

Question 17

What 3 things does the water and carbon cycle depend on

Answer 17

• Carbon combines with water in the atmosphere. Allowing for chemical weathering which removes carbon from the atmosphere
• Water is needed for photosynthesis, which removes carbon from the atmosphere
• The amount of CO2 in the atmosphere effects global temperatures, affecting the amount of evaporation that takes place, which. affects the amount of precipitation

Question 18

What Is climate change going to affect?

Answer 18

Plants, Animals and people

Question 19

What 6 ways is climate change going to have impacts?

Answer 19

1) The pattern of precipitation is expected to change - wet areas wetter and dry areas drier
2) Extreme weather events more frequent
3) Agricultural productivity will decrease in some areas
4) Sea levels will rise further
5) Geographical range of some species will. change as climate changes
6) Plankton numbers may decline if temperature increases having. a knock on event on marine food chains

Question 20

What are the levels of carbon like now compared to 1750?

Answer 20

40% more CO2

Question 21

What is the IPCC?

Answer 21

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) - an organisation set by the UN to share knowledge about climate change. It states countries need to reduce the amount of CO2 emitted by human activities to stop it

Question 22

What are people doing at an individual level to reduce carbon?

Answer 22

People choose to use their cars less and buy fuel efficient cars and make their homes energy efficient like double glazing windows

Question 23

What are people doing at an regional / national level to reduce carbon?

Answer 23

Governments reduce reliance on fossil fuel and increase the use of renewable energy governments invest in CCS. CO2 emitted from burning fossil fuels Is captured and stored underground

Question 24

What are people doing at an global level to reduce carbon?

Answer 24

Countries work together to reduce emissions like the 2015 Paris agreement. There’s International carbon trading schemes. Countries and businesses are given a limit on carbon production