climate change midterm

how does the air move next to an area of low pressure in the northern hemisphere?

counterclockwise around the area of low pressure

which of these situations can lead to rain? choose all answers that apply: moist air moving up a mountain; dry air moving down a mountain; moist air rising due to convection; dry air moving down due to convection

moist air moving up a mountain; moist air rising due to convection

after a major volcanic eruption, the amount of aerosols in the atmosphere increases. it will act to _ the climate (type “cool” or “warm”)

cool

what kind of water does upwelling bring to the surface?

cold and rich in nutrients

how does the density of seawater depend on temperature and salinity?

density is higher for cold and for saline water

ocean currents make ocean warming the same everywhere. true or false?

false

in what direction do the atmosphere and oceans transport heat?

from the equator to the poles

which of the following components of cryosphere contains most of frozen water?: sea ice; glaciers; arctic ice sheet; antarctic ice sheet

antarctic ice sheet

what do we mean when we say that the albedo of a surface is high?

most sunlight is reflected by the surface

melting of sea ice decreases albedo but does not affect the sea level

true

what happens to carbon in the ocean after phytoplankton consumes it through photosynthesis?

almost all of this carbon is eventually released to the atmosphere after living organisms die and water moves upward

what happens to carbon on land after plants consumes it through photosynthesis?

almost all of this carbon will go back to the atmosphere because of respiration from plants and bacteria

what is the main effect of burning fossil fuels on the carbon cycle?

burning releases carbon that would otherwise stay in the earth’s crust for millions of years

it takes _ heat to evaporate 1kg of water than to melt 1kg of ice

more

what will happen to an object if the amount of radiation it absorbs is less than the amount of radiation it emits?

the temperature of the object will cool

at cooler temperatures, an object will radiate _ electromagnetic waves

longer

if the same amount of energy passes through a larger area, the energy flux is _

smaller

why is the radiation from the sun in the form of shortwave (visible light), whereas the earth emits longwave (infrared) radiation?

the sun is hot and the earth is cold

the greenhouse effect involves this type of radiation

longwave radiation from the earth

how can clouds affect the radiative balance and temperature of earth’s surface? select all that apply: clouds warm the surface by absorbing and re-emitting infrared radiation (greenhouse effect); clouds cool the surface by reflecting incoming solar radiation (high albedo); clouds always warm the surface when precipitation occurs; clouds have little or no effect on surface temperature

clouds warm the surface by absorbing and re-emitting infrared radiation (greenhouse effect); clouds cool the surface by reflecting incoming solar radiation (high albedo)

how much does the total solar energy change over the course of the solar cycle?

0.1%

la nina corresponds to _ than usual temperatures in the eastern tropical pacific

cooler

volcanic eruptions increase the amount of aerosols in the atmosphere, which _ the climate

cools

how will chemical weathering change in a warmer and wetter climate? is this a positive or negative feedback to warming?

weathering will intensify; it is a negative feedback

if warming temperatures cause disappearance of forests (“deforestation”) it will lead to a _ feedback

positive

in cold climate, ice-albedo feedback can

lead to the freezing of the entire planet