Review Guide for Atmosphere/Global Warming Quiz
1. Which ghg (greenhouse gas) is most abundant? CO2
Which is the most scarce? CFC
2. Which ghg is most powerful at absorbing heat? Water Vapor
Which is weakest? CO2
3. Water Vapor can both warm the Earth and cool it--how? Holds in heat like
a blanket, and reflects sunlight which keeps the Earth cool.
4. What things could happen if a lot of the polar ice caps melt?
a. To the shoreline? A rise in sea level
b. To the fresh water supply? The fresh water supply would be
reduced as salt water invades river deltas (like the Mississippi
and the Chesapeake Bay) and low lying land areas like Florida.
5. What human activity is the biggest contributor to global warming? Burning
fossil fuels is how humans contribute the most to global warming.
6. What could stop the Gulf Stream from flowing?
As polar ice melts and more precipitation drops in Scandinavia (Norway,
Sweden, Finland) the salinity of the North Atlantic Ocean reduces
disrupting the current.
What would happen if it did stop? The climate in the United
Kingdom and Ireland would become like Alaska as the two areas are on
the latitude. The East coast of the United States would become cooler.
7. What could make the Rain Forests disappear? A rise in CO2 levels will
reduce the amount of CO2 absorbed by plants through transpiration
producing less O2. Stomata on the leaves will not open as wide or as long
to absorb the same levels of CO2.
What would happen if they did? The rain forest would become
grassland and desert.
8. What would happen if the Methane in the ocean sediments was released?
The ocean would burn.
How could this happen? A rise of ocean temps would release the methane
clathrates.
9. What does the Keeling Curve show? A rise of CO2 over years and seasonal
CO2 changes.
10. What is causing Global Dimming? Air pollution
Name two types of evidence that support the theory of Global Dimming?
Pan evaporation; solar radiation measurement
11.What does the term “Aerial Ocean” refer to? The term “Aerial Ocean
refers to a description of the atmosphere.
Who came up with this term? Alfred Wallace