Air Currents
What are the three main north-south global circulatory air cells that govern weather and climate?
Hadley, Ferrel, Polar
Seawater's salinity gives it what two characteristics compared to fresh water?
Seawater is heavier and has a lower freezing point.
How far back can ice cores track climate?
At least 800,000 years
What percent of a tree's weight is carbon?
About 50%
Why are commercial cod fisheries in the Arctic Ocean booming?
With less sea ice, more nutrients and more fishing boats are pushing poleward.
What weather phenomenon can adiabatic cooling produce?
Precipitation
What are common large-scale ocean currents called?
Gyres
What isotope is key to the most commonly used radiocarbon dating?
Carbon-14
What does ocean acidification mean?
Oceans are becoming less alkaline.
What does the return of 24-hour sunlight trigger in the Arctic?
It creates a mass algae bloom that kickstarts the marine food chain.
Due to the Coriolis effect, a mass of air moving away from the equator moves in what direction?
Eastward in both hemispheres
How long does it take for the Thermohaline Circulation to complete its circuit around the globe?
1000 years
Up to 60,000 years
This is the scientific term for Earth's reflectivity.
What is albedo?
This term describes runaway warming of polar latitudes.
What is Arctic Amplification?
Global circulation of the atmosphere in the tropics and subtropics are influenced by what?
Hadley cells and Intertropical Convergence Zone
What key ocean quality is needed to form a hurricane?
A water temperature of at least 80 degrees Fahrenheit (26.6 Celsius)
How far back can tree rings trace climate?
13,000 years
What is term describes how carbon dioxide is stored once captured?
Carbon sequestration
How does climate change impact polar bears of the Arctic?
Less sea ice reduces their ability to catch seals.
Where do the Polar and Ferrel cells meet?
Polar front
Water molecular characteristic gives water its high heat capacity and other special qualities?
Strong dipolar hydrogen bonds.
How long ago did global temperatures and CO2 last rise as much and as quickly as present climate change?
56 million years ago (Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, or PETM)
About how much of the atmospheric carbon dioxide released since the Industrial Age remains in the atmosphere?
Almost 45%
This term describes natural variations in heat exchange between polar and more southerly latitudes.
What is Arctic Oscillation?