Energy 2: Climate Change

1. ENERGY CYCLES 2:
Climate
ppt. by Robin D. Seamon
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2. It’s all connected! Changes in one affects the other:
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3. Weather- state of the atmosphere at a given time
and place
Climate- pattern of weather at a given location
over time.
How do we classify climate systems?
Koppen Classification System
Based on vegetation & average monthly
precipitation & temperature
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4. A B C D A
Tropical Dry Mid-
temp.
Snow Polar
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5. TROPICAL CLIMATES
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• mT air masses (wet, warm)
• Equator
1. Tropical wet (rain forest- Brazil)
• Rainfall 59 inches/year; 68-91 degrees F
2. Tropical monsoon (Asia, W Africa)
• Monsoon- wind system that reverses direction
every six months: summer- sea to land (WET),
winter- land to sea (DRY)
3. Tropical wet and dry (savanna)
• 3 seasons: cool & dry, hot & dry, hot & wet

6. 6
Tropical monsoon
climate: India
Tropical rainforest,
Brazil
Tropical wet and dry
climate- Tanzania

7. 7
Summer & Winter
Monsoons

8. DRY CLIMATES
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• Large daily & seasonal temperature variations
• Hottest weather in arid climates (136 degrees F
Libya)
• Mountains often block warm, moist air
• 30% of Earth’s land
1. Arid (deserts)
• 4-12 inches of rain/year
• Atacama desert- no rain in recorded history
2. Semiarid (Australian outback)
• Enough rains for grasslands
• Between arid & tropical climates

9. 9
Arid climate: Atacama
desert, Chile
Semi-arid climate:
Australian Outback

10. MILD CLIMATES
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• Temperate regions; Distinct cold seasons
• Continental air masses
1. Mediterranean (Greece)
• Warm summers with short, mild, rainy winters
• Cool, clear nights
• W coasts of continents 30-40 degrees latitude
2. Humid subtropical (Georgia, US)
• Hot, humid summers & Very cold winters
• Precipitation spread over the year; hurricanes
• E sides of continents
3. Marine (Seattle, WA)
• Longer, cooler & wet winters

11. 11
Humid subtropical:
Mediterranean
climate: Slovenia
Marine climate:
Washington, US

12. 12
• Hot summers, Colder winters, longer snows,
shorter growing seasons, only in N. Hemisphere,
away from bodies of water
• Transitions between mild & polar climates
• Extreme seasonal changes: autumn leaves,
thunderstorms/tornadoes
1. Warm summer climate- (E Europe)
• wet summers (humid)
2. Cool Summer climate- (Russia)
• cold winters/snow from Arctic air masses
3. Subarctic- (Scandinavia, Siberia)
• long, cold winters, little precipitation
• Boreal, taiga
CONTINENTAL CLIMATES

13. 13
Cool summer
climate- Russia
Warm summer
climate- Romania
Subarctic:
Scandinavia

14. POLAR CLIMATES
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• Within the Arctic &b Antarctic Circles near
North & South Poles
1. Tundra climate- (Northern Alaska)
• short summers, temperatures can reach 50
degrees F; wildflowers & migratory birds,
whales, nutrient rich waters
2. Ice Cap (Antarctica)
• Temperatures rarely above freezing, constant ice
• Skies clear, & precipitation low (Antarctica,
largest, driest desert on Earth)
• Little life

15. 15
Tundra, Alaska
Icecap, Antarctica

16. Periodic Disruptions:
• La Nina- period where
warm water moves
towards the West
Pacific (cooler, snows
in US)
• El Nino- a period
when warm water is
moving more towards
the East Pacific
(warmer &rainier in
Central America) 16
La Nina
El Nino

17. CLIMATE CHANGES
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18. ATMOSPHERIC VARIABLES
What factors causes changes in the climate?
1. Biotic processes
2. Sun: Variations in solar radiation
3. Plate tectonics
4. Volcanic eruptions & LIPS
5. Cryosphere
6. Astronomy: Milankovich Cycles
7. Greenhouse gases
• Oceans
• Human-caused
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19. 1. Biotic processes (life)
• Respiration: breathing in/out O2 and CO2
• Transpiration: release of H20 and CO2
• Waste products
• Recycling of gases after death
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20. • Life affects gas cycles:
• Carbon Cycle
• Water Cycle
• Cloud formation
• Weathering
EXAMPLE:
2.4 bya The Great Oxidation Event (put oxygen into
atmosphere)
http://guardianlv.com/2014/02/australian-crystal-found-is-4-4-billion-years-old/
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21. 2. Variations in solar radiation
• amount affects photosynthesis, precipitation,
wind patterns, temperature (AFFECTS LIFE)
• Sun has cycles of solar
storms (flares) & sun
spots which could
affect earth & it’s life
• sunspots/flares emit more
solar radiation (warmer)
EXAMPLE: 1550-1850
Little Ice Age- less
solar activity
Thames River: HENDRICK AVERCAMP'S LITTLE ICE AGE VIDEO: CC 4- Climate change, chaos & little Ice Age (10 min)
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22. 3. Plate tectonics
• shape of the
continents determine
ocean & wind
currents
• How heat is
transferred
• How much moisture
http://www.bgs.ac.uk/discoveringGeology/climateChange/general/causes.html?src=topNav
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23. EXAMPLES:
• Mountains vs. plains
• Large continent vs. several smaller ones
• Connection of two continents block off
ocean currents- Isthmus of Panama
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24. • IN PAST- tectonic movement caused big storage
of Carbon- fossil fuels
TODAY: Coal mines
Carboniferous Era
VIDEO: Formation of Fossil Fuels (2:30)
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25. 4. Volcanic eruptions & LIPs
• spew gases into the atmosphere-
changes chemistry (LIFE)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-29399306
Mt Ontake
9/27/2014
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26. • LIP- large igneous provinces
Places where large igneous rock beds indicate a
past flow of lava from cracks in the crust
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27. • Can block out sunlight, preventing
photosynthesis
(LIFE)
• Meteor induced
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/13/130212--chicxulub-asteroid-dinosaurs-volcano-mass-extinction-
environment-science/
VIDEO: Large Igneous Province formation (2:00) 27

28. MODERN EXAMPLES:
1815 Mt. Tambora: Year without a Summer
1991: Mt. Pinatubo: global temp down 0.9˚F for 3
yrs
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29. 5. Cryosphere: ice layer
affects climate…
http://www.toppforskningsinitiativet.org/en/programmer-1/program-2
http://rramu0153.wordpress.com/
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30. • During ice ages, sea levels are lower
• water/run-off is trapped in ice
• not in water cycle = DRIER
VIDEO NASA Sea Ice 2008 (3:00)
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31. • Albedo: amount of ice affects temperature:
• more ice: more sunlight is reflected back
off Earth
• less ice: Earth absorbs more solar Energy
• Carbon sink: ice keeps dead organisms from
decomposing (more carbon) is absorbed than
released;
• as ice melts… more CO2 is released 31

32. 6. Milankovitch Cycle variation in intensity of
sunlight due to slight variation in Earth’s orbit
• Pace setter for cycles of warming & cooling
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33. http://www.bgs.ac.uk/discoveringGeology/climateChange/ge
neral/causes.html?src=topNav
http://www.southwestclimatechan
ge.org/figures/milankovitch
Orbital shape:
(eccentricity)
Earth’s orbit changes
from it’s elliptical
shape; 100,000 yrs
Orbital axis
wobble:
Changes in tilt
causes strength of
seasons
20,000- 40,000 yrs
VIDEO: Orbital Forcing (1 min)
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34. 7. Greenhouse Gases
• More greenhouse gases = thicker blanket,
holding in solar radiation (warmer)
• Fewer greenhouse gases = thinner blanket,
trapping less solar radiation= (cooler)
http://www.ib.bioninja.com.au/standard-level/topic-5-ecology-and-
evoluti/52-the-greenhouse-effect.html 34

35. • Natural Causes
• Cold oceans absorb gases: CO2
• Warm oceans release gases: CO2
• CH (methane) from decay
• Permafrost melting releases trapped CH4
4
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36. • Human contributions & links to
industrialization
• Burning hydrocarbons: Release of carbon into
the air through burning of fossil fuels &
cement manufacture increases the
greenhouse layer:
CO2 carbon dioxide
CH4 methane
H2O water vapor
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37. Aerosol increase
(tiny particles in
atmosphere)
Man-made CFC’s-
chlorofluorocarbons
can be put into
aerosols &
refrigerants;
combines with and
destroys ozone
layer; banned in the
US
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38. Deforestation- cutting down of forests;
• trees absorb CO2; by cutting them down, we
are eliminating a natural carbon sink
• We are cutting down 50 soccer fields of
forest each minute
• production of soy, timber, beef and palm oil.
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40. Slash & burn- burning of fields for agricultural
purposes put hydrocarbons into the air
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41. HOW DO WE KNOW CLIMATE HAS CHANGED OVER
EARTH’S HISTORY?
Ancient air is not around to be studied like rocks
from the lithosphere are…
or is it?
• Paleoclimatology- study of ancient climate
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42. SCIENTISTS USE CLUES IN…
1. Radiometric dating in rocks & sediment-
Scientists compare sea floor cores (composition
& past temperature)
2. Loess composition (ancient pollen in strata or
rocks
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43. 3. Ancient fossils:
foraminifera in ancient sea beds
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44. 4. Ice core data: layer size, pattern & composition
Frozen water expands trapping air molecules!
VIDEO : Drilling back to the Future (6:20)
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45. Ice Core Samples
• Samples of ancient air!
• Show past atmosphere composition
• Show aerosols (small particles in air)
• Scientists can count layers yearly
• Can be checked with major known
eruptions (like Pompeii in 79CE)
VIDEO 1: Drilling for Ice (3:20) 45

46. 5. Glaciers:
Moraine sediments
6. Evidence left of past sea levels
• On shore
• in ancient
coral beds
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47. FINDING THE PATTERNS
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48. Earth’s pattern of Big Ice Ages have little ice ages
(glacials) within them. In between glaciations, are
periods of global warming (interglacials.)
--------------------------------------------------------------------
LATEST GLACIATION: We’re in it (it’s why we have
polar ice caps)
Quaternary Glaciation 2.6 million years ago to the
present
• GLACIAL: Pleistocene Epoch: most recent
Epoch in Earth’s history- glacier cycles ended
10,000 years ago
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49. • Last ice age: around 10,000 years ago
• Today we are in the Holocene Epoch, a period of
warming (interglacial)
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50. Glacials of the Quaternary glaciation:
• Used to occur every 41,000 years
• During the last 800,000 years, the spacing has
stretched to every 100,000 years
• Ice sheets grow for 90,000 years, take 10,000
years to melt during interglacials. Then the
process repeats itself.
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51. Ice cores and deep sea cores show the same
pattern:
Brief warmth
http://www.skepticalscience.com/trend_and_variation.html 51
Longer cold

52. • Feedback mechanisms: natural responses that
add to the system, causing it to continue in one
direction
??? How is the Milankovitch
Cycle a pace maker to trigger Ice
Ages???
??? What are the feedback
mechanisms that amplify the
Mil. Cycle???
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53. • 1980’s scientists noticed CO levels went up or
down with the temperature in the past
• Russian Vostok Station (1957 +) cores
• CO2 & CH4 during Ice Age
• CO2 & CH4 in warm periods
GAS KEY
2
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54. 54
• Climate Sensitivity CO2 levels in the past
750,000 yrs were at 180-280 parts per million
• In 2012: levels were at 400 ppm and rising
(methane too)

55. http://www.science20.com/virtual_worlds/blog/is_global_warming_real
ly_a_recovery_from_regional_cooling-121820
http://www.forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2013/09/10/the-daily-mail-is-wrong-the-
earth-keeps-warming/
SEA ICE
SEA LEVEL
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56. Changes in Feedback?
In PAST glaciations it appears that:
• Sunlight
• Temperature
• CO2 & CH4 from oceans
Making a warming
loop until Mil. Cycle
turns the cycle
towards cooling again CO & CH
increase
2 4Ice melts-
albedo
decreases
Temperature
increases
56

57. THEN orbital shift:
• Sunlight
• Temperature
• CO2 & CH4 from oceans
Making a cooling loop
until Mil. Cycle turns
the cycle towards
warming CO & CH
decrease
2 4Ice forms-
albedo
increases
Temperature
decreases
decreased
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58. Temperature
CO & CH2 4
CO & CH2 4
Temperature
FASTER
SLOWER
58

59. IN THE PAST:
• Temp increased b/c of sun angle shift
• Sun angle shift started the loop, increasing the
greenhouse gases & warmth
NEW:
• Orbital shift isn’t triggering the warming trend
• extra greenhouse gases are starting the process
• NOW- CO2 levels are increasing the
temperature first
59

60. NEW:
• Gas levels rising faster than anything seen for
millions of years & natural feedbacks are
kicking in…
• Drying forests
• Warmer seas
• Methane from Arctic melt
• Ocean acidification (pH changes)
• Coral reefs dying
• Sea levels rising
• Glaciers/ice caps are melting
• Species diversity is declining
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61. What will those changes be?
VIDEO: Crash Course-Climate
Change (10:00)
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• Greenhouse warming & other human influences
strong enough to change the natural trend
• Could launch Earth into a wholly new climate
trend (new pattern)
CONCLUSION
Geological record verifies with independent
methods & data the process computer models are
predicting:
Disruption of climate from its recent patterns

62. 62
LIVING WITH CHANGE

63. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_change#mediaviewer/Fil
e:NSFmonsoonsandclimatesince200AD.jpg
Human civilizations affected by
climate changes:
VIDEO 2: 300 yrs of fossil fuels in 300 sec (5:30)
VIDEO 1: Climate 101 with Bill Nye (4:30)
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64. Large scale development (urbanization) leads to
regional changes in climate:
Heat islands in large cities
• NYC
• Beijing
• Chicago
Smog
Pavement & roofs get hotter than the air while
shaded or moist surfaces in rural areas remain
close to air temperatures 64

65. Heat Island Consequences:
• Elevated emissions of air pollutants &
greenhouse gases
• Compromised health
• Impaired water quality
• Increased energy consumption (AC)
65

66. Strategies to combat heat islands: (EPA)
• Planting trees & vegetation in cities
• Green roofs: growing vegetation on rooftops
Beruit
NYC
Chicago
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67. Strategies to combat heat islands: (EPA)
• Planting trees & vegetation in cities
• Green roofs: growing vegetation on rooftops
• Cool roofs: installing roofs that reflect sunlight
away from buildings
• Cool pavements: using paving materials that
reflect & not absorb light
67

68. • Smart growth: mix land uses, compact building
design, walkable neighborhoods, preserve open
space, farmland, direct development towards
existing communities, variety of transportation
choices, make development decisions
predictable, fair, & cost effective
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