Keeling Curve
What does the Keeling Curve measure?
CO2 Levels in the atmosphere
About how far back in time do the Vostok ice cores provide climate data?
Around 400,000 years
What do ice cores allow scientists to study?
Past environmental conditions
What caused darkness across Europe, the Middle East, and parts of Asia in 536?
A volcanic eruption
Where does the data from the graph come from?
Mauna Loa, Hawaii
The Earth has gone through several changes of high and low levels of CO2. True or False.
True
Most ice cores come from this location
Antarctica
Scientists traced the volcanic eruption of 536 to which island nation?
Iceland
When the Keeling Curve began in 1958, atmospheric CO₂ was around 315 parts per million (ppm). About what level has it reached in recent years?
420 ppm
Where was the Vostok ice core collected?
Antarctica
What does a thicker ice layer indicate?
The glacier received more snow that year
How much did summer temperatures drop during the year 536?
1.5–2.5°C
What year did Charles Keeling begin his continuous CO₂ measurements at Mauna Loa?
1958
How do modern CO₂ levels (over 420 ppm) compare to those in the Vostok record?
They are much higher than any in the past 420,000 years
What tool do scientists use to collect ice cores?
Hollow drills
What chemical element from volcanic eruptions can block sunlight and cool Earth?
Sulfur
The small zigzag pattern in the Keeling Curve each year is caused by what natural process?
Plants or photosynthesis
During warm interglacial periods in the Vostok record, CO₂ concentrations reached about:
280-300 ppm
Which of the following materials might scientists find trapped in ice layers?
Dust, pollen, volcanic ash, and insects
Snowfall during summer in 536 was reported in which country?
China