Climate Change

Climate Change

1. EARTH’S CLIMATE AND NATURAL CHANGES

2. CLIMATE CHANGE - OUT OF BALANCE

   • weather vs. climat
     • weather: description of atmospheric conditions(wind, humidity, temperature) over a short period of time
     • Climat: the usual weather patterns over a region for a long period of time.
       • determines what kind of plants and animals can live in a specific region
   • Earths planetary climate
     • earths climate system is the result of the sun + different componets of regional climate interacting together
       • energy fron the sun emits ultraviolet and infared radiation, + visable light and heat
         • 30% of the suns radiation is reflected by the clouds
           • The rest gets absorbed into the atmosphere, lands, and oceans
             • Lands and oceans release this absorbed radiation, as thermal energy (heat)
               • Keeps system in balance
       • Atmosphere: layers of gas surrounding the planet
         • ozone gas in the atmosphere (O3) prevents most harmful radiation from reaching us.
           • thinned out hole was found in the ozone layer in the 70's over the poles
             • Cause: found to be long lived chemicals CFC's (chloroflurocarbons) that were used in AC units and refrigerators
       • Hydrosphere: liquid water, water vapour,
         • absorbs radiation from the sun
         • heats up and evaporates which cools down the surrounding areas.
       • Lithiosphere
         • All land on Earth absorbs high-level radiation from the sun and turns it into thermal energy
           • Mountains cause changes in the movement of air in a region.
       • biosphere
         • All living things also contribute to the climate in their region
           • plants in a region cool their surroundings by using carbon dioxide for photosynthesis
   • Glaciers are melting, poles are getting warmer
   • Anthropogenic Greenhouse Gases
   • Less Ice, more water than in previous years
   • Sea levels are rising

3. Animals and certain bacteria produce methane gas as they digest food.

   • Methane and Carbon trap thermal energy, those areas will be warmer

4. GREENHOUSE EFFECT

   • CO2
     • Living things + oceans = carbon sink
     • small part of atmosphere, quarter of greenhouse effect
     • Humans increase the level of CO2
       • Burning fossil fuels, not enough can be absorbed or reused.
         • We keep cutting down more trees that recyle the CO2 in the air
           • Even Plants release it once again when decomposing, after the photosynthesis process
   • N2
     • Thermohaline circulation,
       • Energy transfer systems
         • Continental drift
           • Long-Term
         • Ice ages
   • Methane
     • can absorb 23 times more thermal energy than carbon dioxide
   • Ozone
     • greenhouse gas in the lower atmosphere,
   • Natural: occurs naturally without interference
   • Manmade: Human created

5. Some gases in Earth’s atmosphere trap thermal energy being released

   • send it back to earth