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Climate Risk Management > Final > Flashcards

Final Flashcards

1
Q

What does ENSO stand for

A

El Nino Southern Oscillation

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2
Q

El Nino
(“The Little Boy”)

A

Refers to the weakening or potentially even the reversal of the easterly trade winds along the equator, allowing warm water from the western Pacific Ocean to move east to produce warmer than normal sea surface temperatures in the central to eastern Pacific Ocean

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3
Q

La Nina
(“The Little Girl”)

A

Refers to the normal or “stronger than normal” conditions where easterly trade winds push the warm water of the Pacific to the west, allowing upwelling of cold deep water to occur in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean, causing colder than normal sea surface temperatures in this region

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4
Q

Teleconnection

A

An event or process that influences weather/climate pattern 1000s of miles away or even globally

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5
Q

Southern Oscillation Index

Negative Phase

A
  • Below normal air pressure at Tahiti and above at Darwin
  • Means warmer than normal water in the eastern Pacific (warm water means warmer, rising air and lower atmospheric pressure) and colder than normal in the western Pacific -> El Nino
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6
Q

Southern Oscillation Index

Positive Phase

A
  • Above normal air pressure at Tahiti and below at Darwin
  • Means colder than normal water in the eastern Pacific (cold water means colder, sinking air and higher atmospheric pressure) and warmer than normal in the western Pacific -> La Nina
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7
Q

Equatorical Southern Oscillation Index

A

Uses pressure anomalies over Indonesia and the far eastern Pacific over the equator

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8
Q

Weather

A

The day to day variation in sky conditions, temperature, precipitation, wind, etc.

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9
Q

Climate

A

The distribution of a particular weather variable over a period of time
(normally 30 years)

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10
Q

Climate Normal

A

A 30 year average of a weather/climate variable (eg. temperature)
- Also includes degree days, probabilities, standard deviations, etc.

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11
Q

Plate Tectonics Theory

A

A theory that states that the outer portion of Earth is made up several individual plates, which move in relation to one another upon a partically molten zone below
- As the plates moves, so do the continents

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12
Q

Whats climate change, specifically?

A

Its a change in the distribution of a variable

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13
Q

Milankovitch Cycle

A

Systematic changes in 3 elements of Earth’s Orbit
- Eccentricity
- Obliquity
- Precession

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14
Q

Eccentricity

A

Refers to the shape of Earth’s orbit around the sun
(ie how much the orbit is squashed)

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15
Q

Obliquity

A

Refers to axial tilt of Earth with respect to its orbital place
- Shift from 22.1-24.5 and back again

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16
Q

Precession

A

Wobbling of Earth’s axis like spinning top that winding down

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17
Q

How does La Nina Influence Weather

A

Blocking high pressure pushes the colder air towards northern part of the United States

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18
Q

How does El NinoInfluence Weather

A

Low pressure pushes the warm air towards the southern part of the United States

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19
Q

Below Normal Air Pressure at Tahiti and Above Normal at Darwin

A

Negative Phase
(El Nino)
(Lower Atmospheric Pressure)

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20
Q

Above Normal Air Pressure at Tahiti and Below Normal at Darwin

A

Positive Phase
(La Nina)
(Higher Atmospheric Pressure)

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21
Q

Volcanoes

A

Large eruptions eject sulfur dioxide into the stratosphere where it turns into sulfate aerosols that block a fraction of incoming solar radiation from reaching Earth’s surface

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22
Q

Fossil Fuels

A

Use of coal, oil and natural gas releases carbon dioxide and potentially methane into the atmosphere

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23
Q

Land Use/Land Cover (LULC) Change

A

Changes in land cover/land use also influence climate by changing the absorptive properties of the surface

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24
Q

Model Parameterization

A

Parameterization in a weather or climate model within numerical weather prediction is a method of replacing processes that are too small-scale or complex to be physically represented in the model by a simplified process

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25
Q

Climate Change Feedback

A

Physical process that can amplify (positive) or decreases (negative) the influences of climate change (CO2 increases)

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26
Q

Positive Feedbacks
(Climate Change Feedback)

A
  • Sea Ice Melting
  • Permafrost Melting
  • Forest Fires
  • Water Vapor Feedback
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27
Q

“Tipping Point”

A

The level at which an effect of climate change causes an irreversible (or at least a very large) effect on a earth system

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28
Q

Model Resolution

A

How much spatial and temporal detail the model simulates

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29
Q

Model Guidance

A

NWP models do not produce the exact forecast you receive. There’s always a human component to the forecast
- Models only produce what is called “guidance”

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30
Q

What’s ET

A

ET refers to the water that is evaporated from the surface into the atmosphere
(evaporation + transpiration)

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31
Q

Types of ET

A

Actual or Crop ET
- Crop “water usage”

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32
Q

Types of ET

A

Reference ET
- Potential ET

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33
Q

What does ET form

A

Forms the basis for the hydrologic cycle

34
Q

How is the amount of ET determined?

A
  • The amount of water available to evaporate/transpire
  • The amount of energy available to evaporate/transpire that water
35
Q

Actual ET
(Crop ET)

A

The amount of water that’s actually evaporated and/or transpired

36
Q

Potential ET

A

The amount of water that would evaporate or transpire given no limitis on the availability of water

37
Q

How is actual ET limited?

A

Limited by both
- the amount of water available to evaporate/transpire
- the amount of energy available to evaporate/transpire that water

38
Q

How is potential ET limited?

A

Limited only by the aount of energy available

39
Q

Difference between Hydrologic Cycle vs Water Balance

A

Scale on which they occur

40
Q

Definition

Vertical Wind Shear

A

Change in wind speed and/or wind direction

40
Q

Describe the process that causes water temperature in the eastern Pacific to change during El Nino

A

Weakening and reversal of easterly trade winds pushing warm water from the west to move to the easterly Pacific warming the cold water

41
Q

Describe the process that cuases water temperature in the eastern Pacific to change during La Nina

A

Strengthening of the easterly trade winds pushing cold water from the east to the west cooling the western Pacific

42
Q

Definition

Parameterization

A

In a weather or climate model within numerical weather prediction is a method of replacing processes that are too small-sclae or complex to be physically represented in the model by a simplified process

43
Q

Whats a forecast ensemble

A

An ensemble forecast is a forecast made up of distinct forecasts each generated using slightly different initial conditions or slightly different physics

44
Q

Agricultural water balance is largely a ____ water balance

A

Soil

45
Q

An SPI (standardized precipitation index) value of -2 means

A

Precipitation is 2 standard deviations below normal for the periodn

46
Q

Definition

Field Capacity

A

A measure of how hard the soil holds on to the water against gravity

47
Q

Meterological Drought

A

A lack of precipitation over a period of time

48
Q

Agricultural Drought

A

A decline in and lack of soil moisture, leading to crop losses and/or failures

49
Q

Hydrological Drought

A

A period of inadequate surface and subsurface water resources for established water uses for a given water resources management system

50
Q

Soci-Economic Drought

A

The failure of water resource systems to meet water demands because of a weather related shortfall in water supply

51
Q

3 Major Aspects of Drought

A
  • Duration
  • Severity
  • Geographic Extent
52
Q

Drought Indices attempts to:

A

Characterize drought levels by assimilating data from one or more variables (ie precipitation, temperature, soil moisture, etc.) into a single valve

53
Q

Porosity

A

Proportion of pore space in a volume of soil

54
Q

Matric Potential

A

Describes how hard soil “holds” on to water

55
Q

Volumetric Water Content

A

Ratio of water volume to soil volume

56
Q

Permanent Wilting Point

A

Volumetric water content of the soil beyond which a plant cannot extract water

57
Q

Plant Available Water (PAW)

A

Volume of water thats available for the plant to uptake

58
Q

PAW

A

Field Capacity - Permanent Wilting Point

59
Q

Hydraulic Conductivity

A

A measure of “how easy” it is for water to move in the soil

60
Q

Definition

Micrometeorology

A

Weather/climate processes that occur at scales of 1km or less
(all the way down to mm scale)

61
Q

Influences of Small Scale Atmospheric Processes

A
  • Synoptic Scale Weather
  • Land Use/Land Cover
  • Topography
62
Q

Crop Canopy Closure

A

When the aboveground portion of the crop completely shades the soil and other vegetation, etc beneath it

63
Q

Radiation Use Efficiency

A

Ratio of crop dry matter produced per unit of intercepted photosynthetically active radiation

64
Q

Plant Population Density

A

How many plants/acre is necessary to achieve the highest yield and radiation use efficiency while balancing costs of fertilizer, seeds, etc

65
Q

Vertical Wind Profile

A

how the wind changes speed with height and how this relationship varies by the roughness of the surface its flowing over

66
Q

Roughness Length

A

An empirically determined (from observations) coefficient that describes the friction a particular surface type places on wind

67
Q

How do snow fences work?

A

Wind is forces to go through and around fence losing speed and energy. Snow particles drop out as wind decreases forming drifts in front of and behind fences

68
Q

Cold Air Pooling (CAP)

A

Cold air draining to the lowest point in a field

69
Q

What causes Cold Air Pooling

A

Local cause of inversion a layer of warmer air above a layer of colder air

70
Q

Precipitation

Convective

A

Can be intense and very heavey but is often much local

71
Q

Outlooks

A

Outlooks are simple, just displaying the probability that the period in question will be below, above or at normal for temperature and precipitation

72
Q

Definition

Sources

A

Precipitation, rivers/streams/groundwater moving into a system, irrigation

73
Q

Definition

Sinks

A

ET, rivers/streams/groundwater moving into a system

74
Q

“Sources”

A

Inputs of water

75
Q

“Sinks”

A

Processes or means by which water is removed

76
Q

Greenhouse Gases

A
  • About 25% of the sun’s energy (“shortwave” radiation) is reflected off the top of the atmosphere
  • Remaining energy from is sun is “transparent” so that most of it reaches the earth’s surface
  • About 20% of the sun’s energy is reflected off the Earth’s surface - rest is absorbed and causes the temperature of the surface to rise
77
Q

Greenhouse Gases

A
  • Water Vapor
  • Nitrous Oxide
  • Methane
  • Carbon Dioxide
78
Q

If it rains heavily during the night, and the next day is a sunny, hot, windy day with low RH, what will the actual ET be?

A

Low, because of evaporation rain increases relative humidity.

79
Q

If it rains heavily during the night, and the next day is a sunny, hot, windy day with low RH, what will the PET be?

A

High

Climate Risk Management (6 decks)

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