Download Aim: SWBAT explain how feedback loops may contribute to climate

Please Do Now: 1) What is he only form of Nitrogen
that plants can assimilate?
2)What happens in the process of Nitrification?
Agenda
 Do Now
 Video Clip
 Feedback loops
 Video Clip
Is it global warming or global
climate change?
 Should really be referred to
as climate change
 The results of the CO2
caused greenhouse effect
are much more complex
than simple warming
 Precipitation patterns are
changing, many places are
getting much hotter, some
are getting wetter, most are
getting drier, some are
even getting colder
What is a feedback loop?
 A cause and effect loop
that cycles around
repeatedly
 Ex: Someone gains
weight, making it
harder for them to
exercise. They exercise
less, so they gain more
weight, making it even
harder for them to
exercise. Repeat.
How are feedback loops related to
climate change?
 If the feedback loops
that effect the climate
are positive, we would
expect that as the earth
gets warmer, the rate at
which it heats up will
increase.
Are there positive feedback loops
that affect the climate?
 Yes, a number of
them
 Example 1: Ice caps;
ice reflects a lot of
the sunlight that hits
it. The less snow
there is, the less
sunlight is reflected
into space,
increasing the
warming
Are there positive feedback loops
that affect the climate?
 Example 2: Water
vapor, as the earth
heats up, more water
vapor goes into the
atmosphere. H20
vapor is a greenhouse
gas, which increases
warming. Repeat.
Are there positive feedback loops
that affect the climate?
 Example 3: Fires; as
global temperature
increases, wildfires
become more carbon.
These fires release
more CO2, increasing
the rate of warming.
Repeat.