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| The average state of the atmosphere or ocean |
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| The state of the atmosphere or ocean at a point in time |
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| Nine of the last ten years have had the warmest global average temperatures on record |
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| Evidence of global warming |
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Definition
1) Decline in mountain glaciers and snow cover
2) Reduction in northern hemisphere sea ice
3) Troposphere warming, stratosphere cooling
4) Increase in atmosphere water content
5) Rise in sea level (and more extreme coastal flooding)
6) Higher energy/temperature content in oceans |
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| Primary cause of global warming |
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Definition
| Greenhouse gases, beause they absorb and re-emit longwave radiation, warming Earth's surface. |
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| Impacts of Global Warming |
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Definition
1) More extreme flooding
2) More intense storms, heat waves and droughts
3) Ocean acidification and coral bleaching
4) Loss of global biodiversity due to shrinking habitats
5) Global health issues, such as famine |
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Definition
Earth receives 99.98% of its surface energy from the Sun. Solar energy is created by nuclear fusion (hydrogen fusing into helium). |
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| Electromagnetic Radiation |
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Definition
Self-propagating waves that have electric and magnetic fields.
Move through vauum or matter at the speed of light. |
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The hotter a body is, the shorter the wavelength of its electromagnetic radiation.
Max Wavelength = .0029/T |
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| The total energy emitted by an object is proportional to its temperature |
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A black body emits a temperature-dependent spectrum. Hot bodies emit greater energy at shorter wavelengths.
Basically seems to consolidate the Wien Law and the Stefan-Boltzmann Law |
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| Earth's balance of energy input and output. There is radiative equilibrium when input = output. |
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| When the amount of electromagnetic radiation coming in from the Sun equals the amount of outgoing thermal radiation from the Earth. If these are not in balance, the Earth's temperature will change. |
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| Process by which radiation from Earth's surface is absorbed by atmospheric greenhouses gases and re-emitted, causing planetary warming. |
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1) Water
2) Carbon Dioxide
3) Methane
4) Nitrous Oxide
5) CFCs |
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Definition
Change in net atmospheric radiation at the top of the troposhere.
Amount that the Earth is out of balance.
Greenhouse gases have a positive radiative forcing, while albedo has a negative radiative forcing. |
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Definition
Exchange of carbon between Earth's atmosphere, ocean, vegetation and soil that occurs over time. Carbon is not destroyed, but redistributed on human timescales.
Photosynthesis is the conversion by plants of inorganic carbon to organic carbon, while respiration is the conversion by life of organic carbon to inorganic carbon.
Prior to the industrial revolution, the carbon cycle was balanced such that the distribution of carbon between reservoirs was not undergoing large changes. Human emission of CO2 has fucked this up.
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| Physical and biological processes that transport organic carbon from the surface of the ocean to the interior deep ocean. |
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| Physical and chemical processes that transport inorganic carbon from the surface to the interior deep ocean. |
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| Average amount of time that a carbon atom spends in a reservoir (3.5 years in the atmospher, hundreds of years in the deep ocean). |
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Natural sources include forest fires and volcanic eruptions. Anthropogenic sources include the combustion of fossil fuels and deforestation. The latter type of emissions is 130x greater than volcanic emissions. |
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Definition
Natural sources: bacteria decomposing organic material in wetlands, the digestion process of termites, an unkown ocean source, and hydrates.
Anthropogenic sources of methane emission: cow digestion, natural gas, solid waste decomposition, rice cultivation, waste water treatment, and biomass burning.
Methane has a very short lifetime, and is eventually turned into water and carbon dioxide. |
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Definition
Natural sources: bacterial breakdown of nitrogen in soils and the ocean.
Anthropogenic sources: agriculture, fossil fuel combustion, livestock manure, and the treatment of human sewage.
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Term
CFCs
(Chloroflourocarbons) |
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Definition
Refrigerant, aerosol spray propellant, ad the blowing agent in the production of foams.
CFCs destroy ozone in the stratosphere, contributing to the hole in the ozone layer. They were banned by the Montreal Protocol in the 1970s. |
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Definition
| Triatomic molecule consisting of 3 oxygen atoms that shields organisms from harmful UV radiation when located in the stratosphere. Tropospheric ozone is a greenhouse gas and is created by pollutants in smog. |
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| Greenhouse gas with the largest radiative forcing. The amount of it is determined by the temperature of the atmosphere. H2O is a feedback, not a forcing. |
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| Earth's Surface Temperature Distribution |
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Definition
| Controlled by solar radiation, albedo, elevation, proximity to oceans and specific heat (energy required to heat a mass). |
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| Temperature increases with altitude due to absorption of UV by ozone. Ozone in the stratosphere is good; it protects the surface from harmful UV radiation. |
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| Lowest layer of the atmosphere, in which temperature decreases with altitude. Ozone here is a greenhouse gas. |
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| Change in temperature with altitude. |
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| Tells us that the temperature of a hypothetical gas is proportional to its volume and pressure. |
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| A process that involves no addition or loss of heat. |
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| Atmospheric pressure is the weight of overlying air. Due to gravity, there are more air molecules near the Earth's surface than at the top of the atmosphere. |
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| Lapse rate is the change in temperature with altitude. Lapse rates are large in a dry atmosphere and small in a moister atmosphere undergoing moist convection. The magnitude of the greenhouse effect is dependent on the lapse rate. A large lapse rate yields a large greenhouse effect. |
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| An apparent deflection of moving objects when observed from a rotating reference frame. |
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| A ocean gyre is a circular flow of water driven by the force of winds. Winds cause water to pile up in the center of the gyre, creating a higher surface. Water flows down from here, and is deflected by the coriolis effect, causing a circular flow. In the Northern Hemisphere, gyres are clockwise, while in the Southern Hemisphere they are counterclockwise. |
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| The ocean acts as a conveyor transporting heat across the globe. The upper ocean is driven by winds and the deeper ocean is driven by density contrasts. |
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| Indirect measures of climate for periods beyond the historical record. |
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| Oxygen Isotope Paleothermometry |
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Definition
| Oxygen isotopes are used to infer temperature and ice volume. Ancient shells provide a record of the oxygen isotopic composition of seawater, and can thus be used to give a history of Earth's temperature. |
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| Phanerozoic Climate Change |
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Definition
| Over millions of years, climate has been linked to atmospheric CO2. Sources of CO2 include volcanism and metamorphism, while sinks of CO2 include silicate weathering and organic carbon burial. Low CO2 yields ad ice age, while high CO2 yields a warm climate. Earth's climate has been cooling over the last 55 million years, and this is linked to a reduction in atmospheric CO2. |
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| Burial of living material is a sink for atmospheric carbon. |
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| Chemical weathering of silicate rocks draws CO2 out of the atmosphere. |
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Marked by:
1) Extensive ice cover
2) Lower global average temperature (temperatures colder at high latitudes than low latitudes)
3) Lower sea level
4) Very different flora and fauna
Caused by: Earth's eccentricity, obliquity and precession |
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| Factor that drives climate change. Internal forcings are part of the climate system, while external forcings are not directly part of the system. |
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| An external forcing that emits ash and sulfur dioxide, and causes global cooling. |
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| Dark areas on the Sun's surface that cause solar irradience, and have caused a small amount of global warming in the 20th century. |
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| Small particles or droplets in the atmosphere with a net negative radiative forcing. They reflect and scatter incoming solar radiation, and influence cloud properties. They cause cooling. Volcanos release them, as well as other sources such as industrial emissions. |
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| The transfer of water on, above, or below the surface of the Earth. Increasing global temperature will increase the cycle, causing greater precipitation and evaporation, so some areas will see increased water while others will become more arid. |
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| Portion of Earth where H2O is in solid form. |
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| Frozen soil, thawing in the NH and releasing methane from decomposed organic matter. |
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| Due to melting sea ice and glaciers. Will cause flooding, population displacement, saltwater intrusion into freshwater. |
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Positive: Better photosynthesis, growing season lengthened in mid and high-latitude regions
Negative: Growing season shortened in low-latitude regions |
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| Change in timing of migration, egg-laying, and plant flowering. Animal ranges will change. Cold-water fish will disappear from streams, while warm-water fish will expand their habitat. Lizards will go extinct. Disease-carrying mosquitos and rodents will expand their range and infect more humans. |
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