Climatology 1- Climate, weather , global warming

What are you going to study in this flashcard?

-Difference between weather and climate.

-What is the indian type of climate?

-Concentration of gases in the atmosphere?

-Greenhouse gases

-Anthropogenic activities

-Difference between longwave terrestrial radiation and shortwave incoming radiation.

-Role of CO2

-About water vapour

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What is the difference between weather and climate?

The day to day changes in atmosphere can be defined as weather conditions.

But the long term average annual weather condition is called the climate.

For example, India experiences all types of weather , beginning from summer to winter. But over a huge period of time, monsoon plays a dominant role. So it is said that India has a Monsoon type of climate.

Indian type of climate is

Monsoon as we just stated right now.

When does rain occur? What are conditions required for precipitation?

The clouds must be so heavy that they cannot absorb any more moisture. In more technical terms , the temperature of air must reach dew point such that the relative humidity is 100 percent.

-Once that happens , rainfall ensues.

What gas is responsible for rainfall?Now that we are talking about gases, write down the gases in the atmosphere in decreasing order of their abundance.

Of course water vapour is responsible for rainfall. N>O>Ar>CO2>Ne>He>H

The concentration of CO2 in atmosphere is

.036

What is the importance of the most abundance gas in the atmosphere?

It is essential for soils. It is also used as a preservative. It is also utilized to extinguish fire.

How is nitrogen fixed to the ground?

Plants cannot directly utilize nitrogen in the atmosphere. Rhizobhium Bacterium resides at the root of certain leguminous plants and fixes atmospheric nitrogen into soil. Thereafter the plant uses it for its development.

From where did the word greenhouse come?

Greenhouse is a house made up of glass house that permits the entrance of heat but prohibits its escape. Similarly greenhouse effect traps the incoming solar radiation due to which the earth gradually keeps increasing its temperature, ultimately contributing to global warming.

What is the difference between long-wave terrestrial radiation and short wave incoming radiation?

The light from Sun is called short wave incoming radiation and only a few select greenhouse gases can absorb it.

But the outgoing long wave terrestrial radiation is absorbed by all greenhouse gases.

For example , CO2 a prominent greenhouse gas, can easily absorb outgoing longwave terrestrial radiation is transparent to incoming shortwave solar radiation.

And the only greenhouse gas that partially absorbs short wave radiation is the water vapour.

What is the role of anthropogenic activites in global warming?

Burning fossil fuels, vehicular and industrial emissions all release CO2 into the atmosphere. This contributes to global warming.

This means more melting of glaciers in the summer and less formation of glaciers in the winter.

In addition to that , a lot of natural disasters like cyclones are fueled by exacerbating climatic conditions.

In short anthropogenic activites exacerbate the ramifications of global warming.

Write about the most potent greenhouse gas.

Water vapur is a variable gas.

The concentration of water vapour and CO2 is not fixed in the atmosphere.

It decreases with altitude.

In polar regions, the concentration of water vapour is as low as 1 percent whereas in equator it is 4 percent. More heat and availability of moisture in Equatorial regions raise the water vapour concentration.

In deserts , heat is indeed there but there is no source of moisture. So desert regions , the moisture content in the atmosphere is low.

How does water vapour control the stablity of the atmosphere?

More water vapour more instability

Less water vapur less instability.

Basically, precipitation leads to unstable conditions.

It is somehow ironical and paradoxical in geography that the same location can be calm and unstable at the same time.

The equator is characterized by vertically rising wind currents. So the conditions are calm .

But it is unstable because rainfall is also frequent in this zone.

So the same location, experiences calmness and instability at the same time.