Environmental FINAL

-government has evatuated some of the lower islanders -low lying islands in Indian Ocean-80% of the land areas lies less than 1 m above sea level-highest is 2.4m above sea levelSea Level Rising because...1. thermal expansion of ocean2. as climate warms, glaciers/polar ice are melting

Describes trends and variations in Earth’s climate, involving aspects such as temperature, precipitation, and storm frequency and intensity

Refers specifically to an increase in Earth’s average surface temperature; thus, it is only one aspect of global climate change

Climate- broad region on long term period, varies naturally through time, always has and always will (CONCERN: we have not seen these rates of change in history, it is due to human actions 1. burning of fossil fuels 2. deforestation)
Weather- localized, short term

1. The sun2. atmosphere (without it, we would be 91 degrees colder)3. Oceans (they store and transport heat)

Incoming solar radiation ***70% is absorbed by land, clouds, ice, etc. 30% is reflected back into space*** (incident solar radiation)
Infrared Radiation- reabsorbed by certain gases (GHGs), natural

-not bad, the problem is what humans are doing to greenhouse emissions

(primary ones)CO2Methane (CH4)WaterOzoneCFC'sN20(they differ in potential to warm trophosphere)

From late 1700s, Co2 was 280 PPM (parts per milion) today it is around 385 PPm, change due to industrial revolution

Def: amount of change in energy that a given factor changes
positive (more incoming) tends to warm the systemnegative (more outgoing) tends to cool it

2 Reasons why CO2 is increasing:1. Burning of fossil fuels2. deforestation (burning and cleaning of them removes biosphere's ability to absorb the CO2)-CO2 counts for 85% of the warming
-increase in Methane (15% since 1750) because of burning FF and riasing livestock (effects of production and meet) organic matter, metrobolic waste and growing certain crops (ex: rice)-trophospheric ozone is increasing because of photochemical smog


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Because aerosols that contain black carbon both absorb and reflect incoming sunlight, these particles can exert a regional cooling influence on Earth's surface that is about 3 times greater than the warming effect of greenhouse gases.But even as these aerosols reduce by as much as 10 percent the amount of sunlight reaching the surface, they increase the solar energy absorbed in the atmosphere by 50 percent -- thus making it possible to both cool the surface and warm the atmosphere.

Remain in the atmosphere for only a short amount of time in comparison to other greenhouse gases, and therefore their cooling is localized and temporary. Other side effects of sulfate aerosols in the environment include poor air quality

-more water vapor makes more clouds which could help cool (NEGATIVE) or POSITIVELY w/ more evaporation in atmosphere

Ocean holds 50x more carbon then atmosphere (sink for CO2 is a good thing) -oceans absorb carbon from atmosphere by tiny organisms in water or direct solubilityProblem: oceans absorb carbon slower than what we are adding to the atmosphere and its decreasing because oceans are warming... as water WARMS, solutbility of gases DECREASE