SQ 1-109
Terms
undefined, object
copy deck
- What is the IPCC?
- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (a group created by WMO and UNEP to study climate)
- What greenhouse gas is the most predominate?
- Carbon Dioxide
- What is the "atmosphere"?
- The layer of gases that surround Earth
- What is the hydrosphere?
- The ocean and all other bodies of water on Earth
- What is the cryosphere?
- The area on the planet that is covered by snow and ice
- What is the biosphere?
- The areas on the planet that are inhabited with life.
- What 2 factors complicate the study of global temperature prediction?
-
1. Earth is dynamic and complex.
2. Human behavior is unpredictable. - What are the "highways" for transport of global heat?
- The ocean currents
- Oceans store more heat than the atmosphere because
- Ocean water is more dense and has a higher heat capacity
- The proportion of radiation reflected away from a surface is referred to as the
- albedo
- The average albedo of the Earth is estimated as
- .31
- The range for the albedo on Earth is generally
- .1-.9
- Which type of surface tends to have a low albedo?
- A dark surface
- How do phytoplankton affect the climate on Earth?
- They consume carbon dioxide
- What is a carbon dioxide "sink"?
- A process that uses carbon dioxide (such as photosynthesis)
- What is the function of the station at Cape Grim, Tasmania?
- Measure the concentration of atmospheric chemicals at regular intervals
- What is the function of the station at Mauna Loa, Hawaii?
- Monitor carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere
- In what atmospheric level do stratus and cumulus clouds form?
- the troposphere
- In what atmospheric level do cirrus clouds form?
- Lower stratosphere
- In what atmospheric level does ozone form?
- Stratosphere
- What is the approximate distance from the earth to the sun?
- 150 million km.
- What is the approximate radius of our solar system?
- 1 x 10 to the 13th power
- What is the timeframe for the paleozoic era?
- 570-245 mya
- What is the timeframe for the Mezozoic era?
- 245-66 mya
- What is the timeframe for the cenozoic era?
- 66 mya - present
- For which historical period are the best climate records available?
- the last 10,000 years (Holocene)
- What isotopes (used to determine climate) are found in ice sheets?
- Heavy hydrogen and heavy oxygen
- In order for ice core records to effectively render climate data, they must include which period of time?
- the Holocene
- Which two regions on Earth have preduced the best records for climate study?
- Antarctica and Greenland
- What timeframe is represented by the Vostok ice cores?
- 4 cycles of 400,000 years
- When did the last intergalacial period occur?
- 100,000 years ago - the Eemian
- What climatic pattern governs the Eemian intergalacial period?
- extreme warmth
- What climatic pattern governs the Holocene period?
- a slight rise in temperature followed by a plateau
- What was the warming period of the Holocene called?
- the Medieval Warm Period
- Wha was the cooling period of the holocene called?
- the Little Ice Age
- What kind of plant thrives in dry, cold climtes?
- grassy steppes
- What kind of plant thrives in warm wet climates?
- Trees
- What kind of tree favors a colder climate?
- evergreens
- What kind of tree favors a warmer climate?
- deciduous
- What is an anoxic condition?
- a condition that does not freely supply oxygen
- Which plant structure have proven to be an effective climate "track"?
- pollen
- What are packrat "middens"?
- collected materials cached b packrats
- What are the "amberates"?
- caches preserved in crystal urine by packrats
- Why are tree rings important to climatology?
- They show timescales as short as seasons
- What is cross-dating?
- Correlating tree rings from living trees to dead trees
- Who is credited for establishing tree-ring records?
- Andrew Ellicott Douglass
- What climatic condition is represented in tree-ring data?
- precipitation amounts
- The years from 1645-1715 in climate studies are referred to as
- Maunder Minimum
- What was the Younger Dryas?
- the cold snap that occured at the beginning of the Holocene
- What is the Milankovitch cycle?
- The study of the effect of Earth's motions on its climate
- How much of the Suns energy actually reaches the Earth?
- less than one two-billionth
- how much of the Earth's heat is generated by solar radiation?
- 99.9%
- What are the two major motions of the Earth?
- Rotation and revolution
- What does the rotation of the Earth refer to?
- Earth's spinning on its axis which produce day and night
- What does the revolution of the Earth refer to?
- Earth's movement (orbit) around the Sun
- The rate that the Earth is traveling around the Sun is
- 113,000 kph (70,000 mph)
- What is meant by perihelion?
- The position of Earth's orbit when it is closest to the Sun
- What is meant by aphelion?
- the position fo Earth's orbit when it is furthest away from the Sun
- What causes the seasons on Earth?
- the angle of the sun above Earth's horizon
- For an observer in the northern hemisphere, the angle of the Sun is greater during which season?
- Summer
- For an observer in the southern hemisphere, the angle of the Sun is much less during which season?
- Winter
- What is the typical angle of Earth's axis of motion?
- 23 1/2 degrees
- What is meant by Earth's plane of the ecliptic?
- Earths plane of orbit around the Sun
- What is meant by the Earth's axis?
- an imaginary line through the poles around which Earth rotates
- What would happen to the weather if the Earth had no inclination of axis?
- There would be no seasonal changes
- When the angle of the Sun above the horizon is 0 degrees, what is the equivalent number of atmospheres through which sunlight must pass?
- 45
- When the angle of the Sun above the horizon is 30 degrees, what is the equivalent number of atmospheres through which sunlight must pass?
- 2.00
- When the angle of the Sun above the horizon is 60 degrees, what is the equivalent number of atmospheres through which sunlight must pass?
- 1.15
- When the angle of the Sun above the horizon is 90 degrees, what is the equivalent number of atmospheres through which sunlight must pass?
- 1.00
- When does the summer solstice occur?
- June 21-22
- When does the winter solstice occur?
- December 21-22
- When does the spring equinox occur?
- March 21-22
- When does the autumnal equinox occur?
- September 22-23
- The region located at 23 1/2 N is referred to as
- Tropic of Cancer
- The region located at 23 1/2 S is referred to as
- Tropic of Capricorn
- The region located at 0 degrees is referred to as
- The equator
- What months are included as spring in the Northern Hemisphere?
- March, April, May
- What months are included as summer in the Northern Hemisphere?
- June, July, August
- What months are included as autumn in the Northern Hemisphere?
- September, October, November
- What months are included as winter in the Northern Hemisphere?
- December, January, February
- What hapens during the equinoxes?
- 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night
- Energy is defined as
- The ability to do work
- List the five forms of energy.
- heat, chemical, nuclear, radiant, gravitational
- What are the two types of energy?
- Kinetic and potential
- How is kinetic engery defined/
- Energy of motion
- What are the two forms of atmospheric kinetic energy?
- Heat energy and radiant energy
- What is the definition of potential energy?
- Energy due to position