Our Planet's Heating System: Sun, Wind and Ocean Currents

Our Planet's Heating System: Sun, Wind and Ocean Currents

1. Sun

   • Atmosphere
     • A blanket of gases that surround the Earth
       • 78% Nitrogen
       • 21% Oxygen
       • Small amounts of other gases
         • Ozone
         • Carbon dioxide
   • The Greenhouse Effect
     • 1 - the Sun produces short-wave energy which passes through the atmosphere
     • 2 and 3 - the Earth's surface then returns long-wave into the atmosphere. But long-wave energy finds it more difficult to pass through gases such as carbon dioxide. So some heat remains in the atmosphere
     • The greenhouse effect is called so because it is like the glass of a greenhouse
   • Human Activities and Global Warming
     • Humans produce large amounts of greenhouse gases
       • Carbon dioxide
       • Methane
       • Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
     • Humans activities that cause greenhouse gases
       • People burn fossil fuels, this releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere
       • The cutting down of the world's forests increases the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
       • Refuse dumps containing household waste emit methane
       • CFCs have been produced in making plastics and using fridges
       • The production of CFCs and the burning fossil fuels also damages the ozone layer which protects us from harmful UV rays
     • Some likely effects of global warming
       • Sea levels will rise
       • Climate change
         • Some parts of the world would have more storms, rainfall and flooding
         • Some would have severe drought
       • Desertifcation
       • In Ireland
         • Extreme weather
         • Flooding
         • Some scientist fear global warming could stop the North Atlantic Drift flowing
     • What can we do about it
       • Conserve energy
       • Use renewable energy
       • Plant more trees
   • Uneven Distribution of Heat
     • The temperature of any place depends on latitude
       • Uganda is near the equator and is really hot there
       • Ireland is in middle latitudes and its moderate
       • Antarctica is far from the equator and it is really cold there
     • the further a place is from the equator, the cooler it is lightly to be
     • Near the equator the rays are concentrated on small areas
     • Far from the equator the suns rays are slanted, therefore its heat is spread over larger areas
     • Slanted rays have a greater depth of atmosphere to travel through and therefore they loses more heat before they reach the Earth

2. Moving Air (Wind)

   • Air moves constantly within the Atmosphere
   • How Do Winds Happen
     • Unequal heating of our atmosphere causes winds to blow
     • The weight of air is referred to as atmospheric pressure
     • Cold air is dense and is therefore heavy, this causes high pressure
     • Warm air is not dense and is therefore is light, therefore this causes low pressure
     • Winds blow from areas of hight pressure to areas of low pressure
   • More About Winds
     • Winds are names after the direction from which they blow
     • Winds that blow from the equator are said to be warm winds.
     • winds that blow from higher latitudes are said to be cool winds
     • The winds that are most common in an area are called prevailing winds

3. Global Air Movements/Global Winds

   • Unequal heating of the atmosphere at different latitudes
     • 1. At the equator, hot air rises. Creates belt of low pressure across the world