Climate

Question 1

What is weather

Answer 1

A description of the conditions outside for a short period of time

Question 2

What is climate

Answer 2

The usual patterns of weather in a region for a long period of time

Question 3

Factors that effect climate

Answer 3

Distance from the equator
Presence of large bodies of water
Presence of ocean or air currents
Land formation
Altitude

Question 4

What is a proxy record

Answer 4

natural information that we can measure today to tell us what climate was like in the past

Question 5

Ice cores contain

Answer 5

They provide a record of atmospheric conditions because of the air bubbles

We test the air bubbles for various gases

Lighter O2 colder
Heavier O2 warmer

Dust provides clues for precipitation, temps and volcanic activity

Question 6

Tree rings

Answer 6

1 free ring per year

Thick rings - growing conditions were wet and warm

Thin rings - growing conditions were warm and dry

Dark rings - forest fires

Question 7

Coral

Answer 7

Corals help determine the temperature of surface water

Lighter O2 colder
Heavier O2 - warmer

Question 8

Rocks and caves

Answer 8

Contain pollen and fossils that’s used to identify plants that grew thousands of years ago

Question 9

Rising temperatures

Answer 9

Since 2006 earth has been the warmest

In northern areas the temps have increased as much as 2.5

Question 10

Changes in precipitation

Answer 10

Northern hemisphere has more precipitation with more rain and less snow

Question 11

Changes in ecosystems

Answer 11

Trees and shrubs are flowering earlier
Animals are breeding earlier
Animal and plant communities are slowly migrating
Pests are surviving in areas once too cold

Question 12

Melting ice

Answer 12

Size of glaciers have decreased
Twice as much of Greenland’s ice surface is melting
More inland snow is melting
Arctic sea ice is disappearing which is a problem for animals

Question 13

Rising sea levels

Answer 13

Global sea level has risen twice as fast
Rising sea level es result in floods

Question 14

Thermal expansion

Answer 14

The in trade in the volume of matter as it’s temperature increases

Question 15

Changes in severe weather

Answer 15

Heat waves and hurricanes are slowly becoming More intense

Question 16

Earths climate system

Answer 16

Atmosphere
Hydrosphere
Lithosphere
Living things

Question 17

Atmosphere

Answer 17

Is made of layers of gas

Exosphere- outer space starts here
Thermosphere - orbit of space shuttle
Mesosphere- meteorites burn and become shooting stars
Stratosphere - were airplanes fly
Troposphere - weather occurs here

Ozone gas can be protective or toxic and corrosive

Question 18

Hydrosphere

Answer 18

Includes all liquid and water bodies

Energy is absorbed when water evaporates from oceans and lakes

Energy is given off when water condenses into clouds

Large bodies of water have an effect on climate

Water absorbs and stores more thermal energy then landforms

Question 19

Lithosphere

Answer 19

Made of rocks and solid forms

Lithosphere absorbs high energy solar radiation and converts it into thermal energy then emits the energy back as lower infrared radiation

Landforms have an effect of climate zones bc mountain air is cooler

Question 20

Living things

Answer 20

They change the amount of gasses in the atmosphere

Photosynthesis- plants take CO2 and release O2

Cellular respiration- animals reales CO2 and use O2

Question 21

Suns effect on climate system

Answer 21

Near the equator the sun shines directly overhead and the earth is spread of a small area and feels strong intense

The atmosphere itself absorbs and reflects more energy causing less to reach the ground

Question 22

Energy balance on earth

Answer 22

Suns energy can be transmitted absorbed or reflected

Question 23

Greenhouse gas effect

Answer 23

The natural process whereby gasses/clouds absorb infrared radiation emitted by earth and radiates it heating the atmosphere and the earths surface

Question 24

Greenhouse gasses

Answer 24

Carbon dioxide ( CO2)
Methane ( CH4)
Nitrous oxide ( N2O)

Question 25

Feedback loops

Answer 25

Positive : increase cause Negative decrease cause

Question 26

Water feedback loop is

Answer 26

Positive

Question 27

Effects of clouds

Answer 27

Can have a positive or negative

Question 28

Albedo

Answer 28

Can have positive or negative feedback loops

Question 29

Heat sinks

Answer 29

Atmosphere and hydrosphere

Question 30

Convection currents occur when

Answer 30

A fluid is heated unevenly

Question 31

Prevailing winds

Answer 31

Areas where wind passes over a body of water before before land

Question 32

Prevailing winds from the north are

Answer 32

Cold and dry

Question 33

Ocean currents

Answer 33

Act as converter belts warm water currents travel on the surface cold water currents travel deep down

Question 34

Thermohaline circulation

Answer 34

Warm water from the equator flows toward the poles to replace it creating ocean currents

Question 35

What causes ice ages

Answer 35

Shape of orbit at different distance from the sun Tilt increases and decreases effects on seasons Wobble angle is the same spin direction changes

Question 36

Short term changes

Answer 36

Volcanic eruption - shades the earth and cools down sun cause of ash Air and ocean currents ocean less dense and cools earth Suns radiation changes

Question 37

El niño

Answer 37

Instead of pushing warm surface water towards the west pacific the prevailing winds move it to South America