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Questions and Answers
What is the difference between climate and weather?
List the 4 components of Earth's climate system.
Atmosphere, Hydrosphere, Lithosphere, Biosphere
The Stratosphere contains the Ozone layer which absorbs UV radiation.
True
The Earth's Energy comes mainly from the _____
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What happens to the energy that comes to Earth?
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What are greenhouse gases?
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What does the term 'anthropogenic' mean in relation to greenhouse gases?
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Stopping pollution with greenhouse gases would cause the Earth to warm up.
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Match the following with the correct information: Proxy Records
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What is the difference between climate and weather?
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What are the four components of Earth's climate system?
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What happens to energy that comes to Earth? Some energy is _________ and some energy is absorbed and converted into lower energy infrared radiation.
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The greenhouse effect helps keep the Earth warm by trapping sunlight and turning it into heat.
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Match the following greenhouse gases with their sources:
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What does 'anthropogenic' mean in relation to greenhouse gases?
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Study Notes
Climate vs. Weather
- Climate is a recorded weather pattern over a long period of time (5 years or more)
- Weather is recorded weather over a short period of time (today, tomorrow)
Components of Earth's Climate System
- Atmosphere:
- Composed of gases
- Troposphere: livable conditions, clouds, and weather systems
- Stratosphere: ozone layer, absorbs UV radiation, affected by chlorofluorocarbons
- Hydrosphere:
- Liquid, gas, and solid water forms
- Water in any form absorbs and reflects electromagnetic radiation
- Lithosphere:
- Earth's crust (soil, mineral, rock)
- Rainshadow effect: mountains block precipitation, creating deserts
- Altitude: height of land above sea level
- Biosphere:
- Interaction of atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere with living things
- Cellular respiration: organisms take in oxygen, release carbon dioxide
- Organisms affect atmosphere by changing gas types, affecting solar radiation absorption
Earth's Energy Balance and Transfer
- Energy comes from the Sun
- Energy that reaches Earth:
- Reflected: doesn't contribute to warming
- Absorbed: converted into infrared radiation, re-emitted by Earth's surface
- Energy transfer:
- Air and ocean currents
- Wind: high pressure air moves to low pressure areas
- Prevailing winds: cold and dry from the North Pole, warm and wet from the equator
- Thermohaline circulation: cold, salty water sinks, warm water moves over it, creating ocean currents
Greenhouse Effect
- The greenhouse effect traps sunlight, making Earth warm
- Greenhouse gases (GHGs):
- Molecular gases that absorb and scatter radiation
- Natural sources: cellular respiration, permafrost melting, water cycle, soil bacteria, and tundra
- Anthropogenic sources: deforestation, landfills, aviation, fertilizer, and aerosol
- Without GHGs, Earth would be extremely cold
- Stopping pollution today: Earth would cool, sea levels would drop
Feedback Loops
- Positive loops: increase the effect of change, produce instability
- Negative loops: reduce the effect of change, maintain balance
- Albedo warming and cooling feedback loops:
- Albedo is a surface's ability to reflect heat from the sun
- Higher albedo: light-colored surfaces, lower albedo: dark-colored surfaces
Studying Clues to Past Climate
- Proxy records: indirect evidence of past climate
- Ice cores, tree rings, coral reefs, rocks, sediments, and caves:
- Provide information on past climate, temperature, and precipitation
- Ice cores: gas bubbles, volcanic eruptions
- Tree rings: warm and wet years, cold and dry years
- Coral reefs: ocean temperature, growth rates
- Stalagmites and stalactites: precipitation
- Rocks and layers of soil: plant pollen, fossils, and climate information
Climate vs. Weather
- Climate is a recorded weather pattern over a long period of time (5 years or more)
- Weather is recorded weather over a short period of time (today, tomorrow)
Components of Earth's Climate System
- Atmosphere:
- Composed of gases
- Troposphere: livable conditions, clouds, and weather systems
- Stratosphere: ozone layer, absorbs UV radiation, affected by chlorofluorocarbons
- Hydrosphere:
- Liquid, gas, and solid water forms
- Water in any form absorbs and reflects electromagnetic radiation
- Lithosphere:
- Earth's crust (soil, mineral, rock)
- Rainshadow effect: mountains block precipitation, creating deserts
- Altitude: height of land above sea level
- Biosphere:
- Interaction of atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere with living things
- Cellular respiration: organisms take in oxygen, release carbon dioxide
- Organisms affect atmosphere by changing gas types, affecting solar radiation absorption
Earth's Energy Balance and Transfer
- Energy comes from the Sun
- Energy that reaches Earth:
- Reflected: doesn't contribute to warming
- Absorbed: converted into infrared radiation, re-emitted by Earth's surface
- Energy transfer:
- Air and ocean currents
- Wind: high pressure air moves to low pressure areas
- Prevailing winds: cold and dry from the North Pole, warm and wet from the equator
- Thermohaline circulation: cold, salty water sinks, warm water moves over it, creating ocean currents
Greenhouse Effect
- The greenhouse effect traps sunlight, making Earth warm
- Greenhouse gases (GHGs):
- Molecular gases that absorb and scatter radiation
- Natural sources: cellular respiration, permafrost melting, water cycle, soil bacteria, and tundra
- Anthropogenic sources: deforestation, landfills, aviation, fertilizer, and aerosol
- Without GHGs, Earth would be extremely cold
- Stopping pollution today: Earth would cool, sea levels would drop
Feedback Loops
- Positive loops: increase the effect of change, produce instability
- Negative loops: reduce the effect of change, maintain balance
- Albedo warming and cooling feedback loops:
- Albedo is a surface's ability to reflect heat from the sun
- Higher albedo: light-colored surfaces, lower albedo: dark-colored surfaces
Studying Clues to Past Climate
- Proxy records: indirect evidence of past climate
- Ice cores, tree rings, coral reefs, rocks, sediments, and caves:
- Provide information on past climate, temperature, and precipitation
- Ice cores: gas bubbles, volcanic eruptions
- Tree rings: warm and wet years, cold and dry years
- Coral reefs: ocean temperature, growth rates
- Stalagmites and stalactites: precipitation
- Rocks and layers of soil: plant pollen, fossils, and climate information
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Description
Learn about the components of the Earth's climate system, including the atmosphere and hydrosphere, and how they affect weather and climate. Understand the differences between climate and weather, and the layers of the atmosphere.
