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Chapter 18 Objective Questions
Global Climate Change
Terms to know:
Albedo
Carbon offset
El Nino
Global climate change
Greenhouse effect
Greenhouse gas
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate change (IPCC)
Kyoto Protocol
La Nina
Milankovictch cycle
Proxy indicator
Solar output
Storm surge
Thermohaline circulation
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (FCCC)
Rising Seas May Flood the Maldives Under
1. Where are the Maldives?
2. What are the issues these islands are facing?
Our Changing Climate
1. What are the concerns about climate?
What is climate change?
1. What are we seeing in terms of climate change and its effect on the Earth’s weather patterns?
2. What is global warming referring to?
The sun and the atmosphere keep the Earth warm 1. What three things exert more influence on the Earth’s climate?
2. How much incoming solar radiation is absorbed?
“Greenhouse gases” warm the lower atmosphere 1. What is infrared radiation?
2. What gases absorb this infrared radiation?
3. These gases are referred to as?
4. What do they do once they absorb this radiation?
5. Is the greenhouse a natural occurrence?
6. What have human activities contributed to this warming trend?
7. Look at Table 18.1. How do the different greenhouse gases differ in their contribution to this
warming?
Carbon dioxide is the greenhouse gas of primary concern 1. Why does carbon dioxide pose more threat than other gases?
2. Where has this carbon dioxide that has caused such an increase come from?
3. What role do forests play in the flux of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere?
Other greenhouse gases add to warming –
1. Where does methane come from in the atmosphere?
How to stop cows burping is the new field work on climate change
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article2051364.ece
2. Nitrous oxide?
3. Ozone?
4. What is the most abundant greenhouse gas?
5. Which one contributes most to the effect?
6. Why is water vapor not seen as a growing concern on climate change?
7. What will happen to water vapor concentrations as the Earth warms?
Aerosols may exert a cooling effect –
1. How can aerosols contribute to warming and cooling?
2. How does sulfur dioxide contribute?
Radiative forcing expresses change in energy input over time 1.
What is radiative forcing? Check out Figure 18.4.
2. Positive forcing?
3. Negative forcing?
The atmosphere is not the only factor that influences climate –
Expect to see an essay on this!
1. What are Milankovitch cycles?
2. What are solar flares?
3. How does oceans absorption of carbon dioxide affect temperature?
4. How does oceans circulation affect temperature?
5. What is El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO)?
6. What happens in Australia and other Asian areas when there is an El Nino?
7. How does it affect weather in the US?
8.
Are hurricanes more or less frequent during El Nino?
9. How are fisheries affected along the western coast of South America during an El Nino?
10. What happens during La Nina?
11. What is thermohaline circulation?
12. What is the NADW?
13. Why is ocean dilution of concern?
Check out Figure 18.6 and Figure 18.7. Make sure you understand these diagrams.
Studying Climate Change
Proxy indicators tell us about the past 1. What are proxy indicators?
2. What information can scientist determine from ice cores?
3. How can they use this information?
4. What can scientists learn about from studying ancient plant life?
5. What do tree rings indicate?
6. How can scientists use coral reefs to determine weather patterns from years earlier?
Read “Reading History in the World’s Longest Ice Core” on pp. 514 – 515.
Direct atmospheric sampling tells us about the present 1. According to Keeling what has been the change in carbon dioxide concentrations between
1958 and 2007?
2. Do a little math … what percentage change is this?
Models help us understand climate –
1. What are climate models?
2. Why are they called coupled?
Current and Future Trends and Impacts
The IPCC summarizes evidence of climate change and predicts future impacts 1. What is IPCC?
2. Look at table 18.12. List 2 trends for each of the following:
Global physical –
Social –
Regional physical –
Biological -
Temperature increases will continue –
1. How much did temperature increase between 1906 – 2005 according to IPCC?
2. What years have been the warmest recorded?
3. How long have we been quantifying (measuring) global data?
4. What does the IPCC will be the rise in temperature per decade if we were to cease gas
emissions today?
5. What is happening to sea surface temperatures?
6. Do you think sea temperatures are the cause of more dangerous hurricanes?
Changes in precipitation very by region –
1. What happens to water vapor content in the atmosphere as temperature rises?
Melting ice and snow have far-reaching effects –
1. What happens to glaciers when temperatures get warmer?
2. What happens to areas that depend on the runoff for water?
3. What happens to reflection of sunlight when ice melts?
Read “Timing Greenland’s Glaciers as They Race to the Sea” on pp. 322 – 323.
Rising sea levels will affect hundreds of people –
1. How much did sea levels rise by between the years of 1961 – 2003?
2. 1993 – 2003?
3. What is a storm surge?
4. What happens to the pH of ocean water as it absorbs more carbon dioxide?
5. What does this do to coral reefs?
Climate change affects organisms and ecosystems –
1. What happens to ecosystems in terms of seasonal events?
2. Where do organisms go when their habitat no longer supports them?
Climate change exerts societal impacts –
Agriculture –
Forestry –
Health –
Economics –
Impacts vary regionally –
Look at Table 18.2 and list 4 predicted impacts.
1.,
2.
3.
4.
Are we responsible for climate change?
1. How much global warming effect does the IPCC blame on humans?
2. Is it a “real” issue? Who are “greenhouse skeptics”?
3. Why do you think there is such controversy on the subject of global warming?
4. How good is the “evidence” (the science) for carbon dioxide being the culprit for global
warming?
Watch the movie “An Inconvenient Truth” by Al Gore. Go to http://www.climatecrisis.net/ and
watch the trailer and read about the science.
There are varying opinions about what is presented in this movie. There is much criticism as to what
Al Gore says and what Al Gore does. Al Gore is a Democrat – often referred to as a liberal. At the
same time there is much argument from the more conservative side – the Republicans – that much of
what Al Gore presents is one sided and has a political agenda to it. The following article from Time
reflects some of the argument about his movie and its presentation:
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/law/corporate_law/article2633838.ece
What do you think? Remember, you cannot debate a point if you do not know what you are arguing
for or against. One of the things you learn in science is to be objective!!!
How will you arrive at a conclusion as to what you believe is really happening in global warming?
Responding to Climate Change
In case you have been asleep for the past several years … have you noticed how everything is about
going “green”? From the career you choose to the house you build, it is all about “going green”. As
more and more businesses jump on the environmentally friendly product do you believe the
consumer is being fooled?
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=16754919
"When we dug a little deeper, we were actually shocked to discover that all but one were committing
what we're now calling one of the Six Sins of Greenwashing," Case tells Steve Inskeep. The one
product was paper napkins, but Case says the firm decided not to name specific products.
Shall we pursue mitigation or adaptation?
1. What would mitigation involve?
2. What would adaptation involve?
Electricity generation is the largest source of greenhouse gases –
Conservation and efficiency –
1. How can we achieve this?
Sources of electricity –
1. What can you swap out as a fuel source for a cleaner burn?
2. What would carbon sequestration do?
Transportation is the second largest source of US greenhouse gases -
1. How much of the gas you use in your car actually goes to move your car?
2. How is car industry making changes?
Automotive technology –
1. What will stimulate changes? If you have not already noticed this … wake up!!!
Driving less and public transportation –
2. How has gas price affected where people are choosing to live?
3. What is the trend in Atlanta?
We can reduce emissions in other ways –
1. Name 4 ways.
1.
2.
3.
4.
We will need to follow multiple strategies to reduce emissions –
Shall we use government mandates or market incentives?
1. What could be some strategies here?
We began tackling climate change by international treaty –
2. What is the FCCC and its goal?
3. How did the US fair in the cutback?
4. What does the Kyoto Protocol aim to do?
How did the US respond?
5. Why do you think the US responded in the manner it did?
6. Is this a solution?
States are advancing climate change policy –
Market mechanics are being used to address climate change –
1. What is a cap and trade program?
Carbon offsets are vague –
1. What is a carbon offset?
2. What are the problems with this?