Temperature

Question 1

How might a volcanic eruption affect the earth’s radiation budget?

Answer 1

Gases and dust reflect, scatter, AND absorb insolation

Question 2

What is the unusual net effect from volcanic eruptions?

Answer 2

• Tropospheric cooling
• Stratospheric heating
• Warm winter/cool summer

Question 3

What happened in 1816, and what is this year known as?

Answer 3

“The Year Without a Summer”. It is when temperatures lowered by ~1°F globally, Cold, moist weather N Hemi.

Question 4

How did 1816 affect certain places and humans?

Answer 4

New England: frosts and snow in June, July, August killing crops—severe food shortages.

Europe: severe food shortages and rioting, violencetyphus epidemic 1816-17 killed 200,000.

Bengal, India: cholera outbreak spread throughout world 1816-17.

Question 5

What is a “Nuclear Winter” and who coined this term?

Answer 5

A global climate condition that might be possible due to nuclear war (or accidents!). Carl Sagan coin this term.

Question 6

How could a nuclear winter affect the earth?

Answer 6

1. Fires and Smoke reaching upper ATM and blown around for months
2. Darkness—blocking insolation
3. Rapid cooling 1-5°C(Other estimates even higher than Sagan’s! 11-22 °C)

Question 7

What are the theories for what caused the dinosaurs to go extinct?

Answer 7

1. Asteroid impact

2. Volcano - greenhouse theory

Question 8

What is the asteroid impact theory?

Answer 8

• Dust, debris in ATM
• Huge fires, more debris it ATM
• Proposed effects: At first, cooling, Later, warming

Question 9

What is the evidence of giant asteroid strikes?

Answer 9

At the K-T boundary there is lots of Iridium and lots of carbon (charcoal) deposits

Question 10

What is the volcano - greenhouse theory?

Answer 10

Volcanoes caused a carbon cycle perturbation.

1. in the atmosphere, there was a co2 buildup, climatic warming, and climate zones shift
2. in the hydrosphere and lithosphere, the sea levels rise, ocean chemicals change, sedimentation changes, and polar ice melts
3. in the biosphere, there is ecological instability, animal and plant migration, tropical diseases expand range, hypothermia

Question 11

What is a compromise between these two theories?

Answer 11

Asteroid may have caused volcanic activity, combination of effects

Question 12

What is temperature?

Answer 12

A measure of sensible heat, created by molecular motion

Question 13

What is Air Temperature?

Answer 13

Air Temperature is measured by thermometer 1.0 m above ground. Must be sheltered from sun!

Question 14

Which is more important for the distribution of plants averages or extremes?

Answer 14

Extremes are often limiting factors for crops and other plants, animals, and organisms

Question 15

What does dirunal mean?

Answer 15

Daily

Question 16

What is the warmest and coldest time of day?

Answer 16

Warmest: 4pm
Coldest: 6am

Question 17

What is temperature lag?

Answer 17

High point of insolation (shortwaves) crosses outgoing earth energy (longwaves) = Max Temp

Question 18

Does temperature lag occur in annual temperature too?

Answer 18

Yes!

Question 19

What are the 5 major controls of temperature?

Answer 19

1. Latitude
2. Elevation
3. Land and water differences
4. Ocean currents
5. Prevailing winds/ geographic position

Question 20

How does latitude control temperature?

Answer 20

Latitude–influences insolation by sun angle and daylength–generally warmer at low latitudes, cooler at high latitudes.

Question 21

How does elevation control temperature?

Answer 21

Elevation –temp decreases ~3.5 ºF/1000 ft.

At high elevations air is thinner (less dense) = less molecular activity

Question 22

How does land and water control temperature and how are they different?

Answer 22

Land heats up and cools down faster than large water bodies.

Question 23

What is the specific heat of water?

Answer 23

The amount of heat needed to raise 1 gram substance, 1º C

Question 24

What is the specific heat of water compared to land?

Answer 24

Water is 3x that of land

Question 25

What is the transparency of water?

Answer 25

It is when insolation penetrates the water, and distributes heat over a large area

Question 26

Why is water harder to heat than land?

Answer 26

1. water mixes - circulates heat NRG downward. this keeps temperature consistent
2. water evaporates (cooling process) - keeps water cooler on hot days and seasons

Question 27

What are the two important rules about water and land?

Answer 27

1. Temperare extremes are greater over land than water

2. Marine influence moderates temperature

Question 28

How do ocean currents control temperature?

Answer 28

The temperature of bodies of water have strong influence, especially cool water in summer.

Question 29

How do prevailing winds/ geographic position control temperature?

Answer 29

Windward side of mountains and the leeward side can control temperature

Question 30

What is temperature like in the tropics?

Answer 30

The temperature range is greater in one day than over the year (e.g., from summer to winder). There is very little season temperature variation!