Deck 20: Global Climate Change

Question 1

The main goal of paleoclimatology is to understand the climate of the past in order to .

A)assess the current and potential future climate in the context of natural climate variability
B)positively identify why some species died out and others remain on Earth
C)discover the changes in climate through geologic time and correlate it with gas composition changes in the atmosphere
D)all of the above

Answer 1

A

Question 2

One half of the atmosphere lies below an altitude of .

A)3.7 kilometers
B)16 kilometers
C)100 kilometers
D)5.6 kilometers

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Clean, dry air is composed almost entirely of .

A)oxygen
B)carbon dioxide
C)nitrogen
D)nitrogen and oxygen
E)oxygen and carbon dioxide

Answer 3

D

Question 4

The climate system consists of the .

A)biosphere
B)geosphere and cryosphere
C)hydrosphere and atmosphere
D)all of the above

Question 5

Variations in the angle that Earth's axis makes with the plane of it's orbit is called .

A)obliquity
B)axis precession
C)precession
D)eccentricity

Question 6

What percent of the solar energy reaching the top of the atmosphere passes through the atmosphere and is absorbed at Earth's surface?

A)20 percent
B)50 percent
C)30 percent
D)40 percent

Question 7

Ozone, another important component of the atmosphere is concentrated in the .

A)mesosphere
B)thermosphere
C)troposphere
D)stratosphere

Question 8

How do aerosols affect climate?

A)reflecting sunlight back to space
B)making clouds "brighter" reflectors
C)absorbing sunlight, not reflecting it back to space
D)both A and B
E)both B and C

Question 9

The hotter the radiating body, .

A)the wavelength of maximum radiation does not change
B)the longer the wavelength of maximum radiation
C)the shorter the wavelength of maximum radiation

Question 10

Global warming since the mid- 1970s has been about .

A)0.4°C
B)0.8°C
C)1.0°C
D)0.6°C

Question 11

Types of climate- feedback mechanisms consist of _ .

A)negative- feedback mechanisms
B)positive- feedback mechanisms
C)neutral- feedback mechanisms
D)both A and B

Question 12

Ozone is a major component in a noxious mixture of gases and particles called .

A)water vapor
B)trace gases
C)aerosols
D)chlorofluorocarbons
E)photochemical smog

Question 13

The trace gas(es)that are most important are .

A)nitrous oxide
B)chlorofluorocarbons
C)methane
D)methane and nitrous oxide
E)all of the above

Question 14

The natural cause(s)of climate change is(are).

A)variability in Earth's orbit and volcanic activity
B)movement of lithospheric plates farther/closer to the equator
C)variability in Earth's orbit
D)volcanic activity
E)all of the above

Question 15

Earth's atmosphere is divided vertically into four layers on the basis of temperature. The layers, in order from bottom to top, are .

A)troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere
B)stratosphere, troposphere, mesosphere, thermosphere
C)mesosphere, thermosphere, stratosphere, troposphere
D)thermosphere, mesosphere, stratosphere, troposphere

Question 16

Climate is a description of the .

A)exchange of energy and moisture
B)state of the atmosphere at a given time and place
C)aggregate weather conditions, "average weather"
D)central component of the complex, connected global environmental system on which all life depends

Question 17

Proxy data for detecting climate change comes from .

A)sunspots
B)seafloor sediments
C)tropical deforestation
D)all of the above

Question 18

Solar radiation is reflected back to space from _ .

A)clouds
B)atmosphere
C)snow and ice
D)land- sea surface
E)all of the above

Question 19

What are the solid and liquid particles suspended within the atmosphere called?

A)aerosols
B)trace gases
C)water vapor
D)ozone

Question 20

Oxygen isotope analysis is the measurement of two isotopes of oxygen (18O and 16O). The lighter isotope, 16O, _ _.

A)is more prevalent in glaciers
B)evaporates more readily from the oceans
C)is more prevalent in precipitation
D)all of the above

Question 21

Seafloor sediments are very important in discovering paleoclimate because they .

A)show a record of temperature in the oceans, which can then be correlated to the temperature of the atmosphere
B)contain meteorites that show when the climate had a drastic fluctuation
C)contain the remains of organisms whose numbers and types vary with changing climate
D)all of the above

Question 22

In 1883, _ erupted and emitted great quantities of sulfur dioxide gas that cooled the global mean temperature.

Question 23

The 2013 IPCC report states that if there is a doubling of preindustrial level of carbon dioxide there will be a "likely temperature increase" in the range of .

A)less than 1.5°C
B)1.5 to 2.5°C
C)greater than 4.5°C
D)2 to 4.5°C

Question 24

The best- known features on the surface of the Sun are dark blemishes called .

Question 25

The reflectivity of surfaces is called .

Question 26

Discuss the various fates of incoming solar energy when penetrating Earth's atmosphere. Is it absorbed or reflected, or both?

Question 27

is 20 times more effective than carbon dioxide at absorbing infrared radiation emitted by Earth.

Question 28

Oxygen isotopes (18O and 16O)are used to determine .

Question 29

Modern climate change is dominated by _.

A)glacier melting
B)human influences that exceed the bounds of natural variability
C)orbital fluctuations of Earth

Question 30

Scientists who analyze proxy data and reconstruct past climates are studying _.

Question 31

Gases are selective absorbers and _ _ of radiation.

Question 32

The role of carbon dioxide and methane in the atmosphere plays in heating Earth's surface has been named the _ _.

Question 33

What scenarios is this graph describing? How does the orange line compare to the other colored lines on the graph?

Question 34

Carbon dioxide is transparent to incoming solar radiation.

Question 35

The _ isotopes in the hard skeletons of corals are an important paleothermometer.

Question 36

Earth's atmosphere is divided vertically into four layers on the basis of temperature. What are the layers in order from closest to Earth to farthest, and how do they differ?

Question 37

Feedback mechanisms that produce results that are just the opposite of the initial change are called .

Question 38

Light, heat, and ultraviolet rays are part of a large array of energy from the Sun called
.

Question 39

The temperature decrease in the troposphere is called the .

Question 40

Gases are called gases because their concentrations are so much smaller than that of carbon dioxide.

Question 41

What are the significant differences between global warming by greenhouse gases and aerosol cooling?

Question 42

What are some of the human impacts on global climate change? What are the possible consequences of global warming? Discuss the projected changes and estimated probability of certain global warming effects occurring.

Question 43

Discuss the three major volcanic events covered in the chapter and how the affected climate change. Also, analyze the Cretaceous Period climate and how it was related to volcanic activity.

Question 44

Explain why the atmosphere is heated mostly by radiation from the Earth's surface rather than by direct solar radiation.