ELSS Examples

What is water’s residence time in the ocean store?

3000 years

What is water’s residence time in the atmosphere?

10 days

What is carbon’s residency time in the atmosphere?

6 years

What is carbon’s residency time in terrestrial biomass?

18 years

What is carbon’s residency time in the ocean surface?

25 years

What is carbon’s residency time in the deep ocean?

1250 years

Tianjin City, NE China’s urban land use is projected to increase from 28% urban land use to what in 2050?

60%

How is it estimated urbanisation will impact runoff in Tianjin City by 2050?

160% increase

How is it estimated urbanisation will impact groundwater recharge in Tianjin City by 2050?

40% reduction

How is it estimated urbanisation will impact evapotranspiration in Tianjin City by 2050?

22% reduction

The Alqueva Irrigation System in Southern Portugal experienced a 50% increased in irrigated crops 2000-2018, how did this impact aquifer recharge?

40% reduction

Agriculture is responsible for what percentage of greenhouse gas emissions?

10%

How much CO2 is released into the atmosphere per tonne of beef?

60 tonnes

The interception rate of Silka Spruce in East England is as high as?

60%

What is the transpiration rate of Silka Spruce in the Pennines?

350mm/year rainfall equivalent

Groundwater extraction from artesian basins in central London for the first half of the 20th century caused the water table to fall by what?

90m

Where has saturated overland flow reduced due to water extraction at the River Kennet?

Marlborough Downs

How much carbon does fossil fuel consumption release into the atmosphere annually?

10 billion tonnes

What percentage of global energy consumption was fossil fuels in 2019?

84%

The £1 billion Drax Project in Yorkshire aims to capture how much CO2 a year?

2 million tonnes

How much of a powerplant’s output is required to separate and compress CO2 in carbon capture?

20%

What is the name of satellite imaging that shows changes in forest and vegetation cover and therefore biosphere carbon storage?

Landsat

Name the satellite NASA uses to monitor atmospheric CO2?

Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2)

Name NASA’s satellites that have monitored sea ice growth and retreat since 1978 using radiated microwave energy?

Earth Observing System (EOS)

How does NASA measure sea surface temperatures and changes in upwelling and downwelling via radiation emitted for the ocean’s surface?

NOAA satellites

How many trees did The Big Tree Plant campaign aim to plant in the UK, mainly in urban areas?

1 million

How much terrestrial carbon is stored in Wetlands?

35%

How much farmland in east Cambridgeshire is being converted back to wetland?

400 ha

How much does sea level fall in glacial periods?

100-130m

How much continental land mass is covered by ice sheets & glaciers in glacial periods?

1/3

How much higher are interglacial concentrations of CO2 in the atmosphere than the glacial maxima?

100ppm

How much water is stored in the atmosphere?

13 GT

How much water is stored in land?

39,000 GT

How much water is stored in the ocean?

1,370,000 GT

How much carbon is stored in the atmosphere?

600 GT

How much carbon is stored in fossil fuels?

4130 GT

How much carbon is stored in deep oceans?

38,000 GT

How much carbon does the slow carbon cycle circulate a year?

10-100 million tonnes

How much faster are flows in the fast carbon cycle than the slow carbon cycle?

10-1000x