Guided Data Exploration: Climate Introduction Since 1900, Earth has experienced
ID: 292601 • Letter: G
Question
Guided Data Exploration: Climate Introduction Since 1900, Earth has experienced a warming of the climate. In this activity, you will explore what factors cause Earth's climate to change, how surface temperatures in different areas of the globe may change under different predicted warming scenarios, and how sea level surrounding various metropolitan areas in the United States may rise as a result of warming global temperatures. cander different predicted warming sa resulob temeratiuies 1. Discuss: Various factors can influence the Earth's climate. Before you begin to examine the degree of influence that a number of factors have on the Earth's climate, brainstorm a list of the various human and natural factors that may cause Earth's climate to change.Explanation / Answer
The Earth’s climate is influenced by many factors, including solar radiation, wind, and ocean currents. The main factors influencing the earth's climate are
Latitude: The further you move away from the equator, north or south, the cooler the temperature. This is because the sun's rays are dispersed over a larger area of land as you move away from the equator.This is due to the curved surface of the earth. In addition polar regions are colder because the sun's rays have further to travel compared to place on the equator.The regions close to the equator receive direct rays of the sun and therefore receive more radiant energy and are warmer at the areas closer to the poles, the sun's rays are at an angle so these areas receive less radiant energy and are cooler.same amount of energy is spread out over greater area at higher latitudes
Air Masses:Air masses carry the conditions from where they originate.These conditions are a combination of two elements:moisture content, temperature
moisture: maritime (m) - formed over water and therefore containing moisture
continental (c) - formed over land and as a result is dry
temperature: tropical (T) - formed near the tropic (latitudes closer to the equator) - warm
?polar (P) - formed between latitudes of 55° and 66° N - cold
arctic (A) - formed over the Arctic - very cold
One letter from each category is combined to get a complete picture of each air mass.
Elevation / Altitude:The higher it is from sea level the cooler the temperature. As elevation increases, the air becomes less dense. Less dense air cannot hold as much heat as dense air, meaning as elevation increases, temperature decreases. In dry air the change of temperature is around 1°C for every 100m of elevation change.
In moist or wet air the change of temperature is 0.6°C for every 100m of elevation change.
Proximity to Water:Large bodies of water have moderating effect on temperature .water is slower to warm or cool than landforms.This means cooler summers and milder winters. Less of a temperature range (difference between highest and lowest temperatures)
Landforms: Landforms also affect patterns of precipitation i.e. the large mountains on the west coast of Canada act as a barrier and produce some of the highest amounts of precipitation (rain and snow) in Canada. As the wet polar pacific air masses reach the mountains the air is forced to rise causing orographic precipitation on the windward side of the mountain and a rain shadow on the leeward side.
People mainly perceive climate change as changes in atmospheric variables, for example, variations in temperature or precipitation. In principle, due to its chaotic dynamics, the atmosphere itself can generate many natural climatic changes. One example of this is the North Atlantic oscillation (NAO), which significantly influences the climate over parts of Europe and North America. It is a kind of pressure fluctuation between the Icelandic Low and the Azores High that determines the strength of winter westerly winds across the North Atlantic. If these are strong, the result is mild and rainy weather in Western Europe; if they are weak it is dry and cold. These kinds of natural oscillations make it difficult to recognize anthropogenic climate changes due to an enhanced greenhouse effect. The atmosphere is not an isolated system. It interacts with other components of the Earth system – the oceans, for example. But it is also in contact with the cryosphere (ice and snow), the biosphere (animals and plants), the pedosphere (soil) and the lithosphere (rocks). All of these elements together compose the climate system, whose individual components and processes are connected and influence each other in diverse ways.
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