Global Warming vs. Climate Change
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Things generally associated with Global Warming
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Global warming is considered to be an enhanced greenhouse effect. Most, but not
all, scientists consider human influences to be major contributors to global
warming. (Person 1 in poem)
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Things associated with Climate Change
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Climate change is considered to be the natural rise and fall of temperatures over
long periods of time. (Person 2 in poem)
Our Planet is Unique
 The Earth is a unique planet because it has an _____________, _____ and
______ capable of providing what we need to survive.
 The daily needs of more than _____ billion people continually stress the
limits and balance of the Earth.
 The Earth’s climate is the complex system that ties together the
______________, _________ and _______ surface.
 Many scientists believe ________ daily activities are changing our climate.
Is Our Climate Changing?
 Does one extreme summer indicate climate change?
 ____. Only by comparing measurements taken over ____________ can we
sense climate change, i.e., the hottest 10 years, of the past 100 years, have
taken place since 1987.
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What is climate?
Climate describes the ____________ patterns over a long period of time.
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How do scientist study past climates?
__________ weather records only exist for the last _____ years or so.
Clues in the ____________ can provide information from thousands of years
ago.
_____________ -- Ice in polar regions contains air bubbles trapped
thousands of years ago.
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_____________ -- The bones of long-dead animals indicate which species
lived in certain areas and when they were there.
___________________ -- After determining the age of the sediment layers,
scientists can study what plants were growing when the sediment was
deposited.
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What our Planet could be like…
“When we calculate what the surface temperature of Earth should be, based on the
heat it radiates to space, we find the whole globe should be a frozen waste land,
colder today by about _____ degrees Fahrenheit on average.”
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What our Planet is like…
Our ____________ saves us from that frigid fate.
We say the atmosphere “_______” the Earth’s radiation (heat). We call this
planetary warming mechanism the “__________________.”
The greenhouse effect is ________.
________ play a major role in the greenhouse effect.
By __________ solar radiation away from Earth, some clouds _______ the
planet.
• Others _________ the Earth by _________ heat near the surface, thereby
contributing to Earth’s greenhouse effect.
• Clouds and greenhouse gases work together to create the
__________________________.
• The radiation budget must ____________ itself.
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• Solar energy reaching Earth must _______ the energy leaving the planet
otherwise the oceans would eventually boil away or freeze solid.
• Scientists warn that we are currently ___________ the Earth’s radiation
balance through human actions.
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What are the Greenhouse Gases?
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__________________________ is the most important greenhouse gas.
Humans have very little control over it.
• _______________ (CO2 ) is the greenhouse gas humans are influencing the
most. CO2 is naturally in the air. But ___________ have dramatically
increased the level of CO2 since the industrial revolution. We continue to
emit ______ into the air with cars, manufacturing, burning of rain forests
and cutting down of trees. The destruction of _______ creates a shortage of
plants to remove CO2 from the air. We also release CO2 into the atmosphere
when we burn fossil fuels for the generation of electricity. In the last 200
years CO2 levels have risen almost ____%.
• _____________ (CH4), is another natural greenhouse gas. It is created
naturally from decomposing matter in swamps. CH4 is used in industries as a
starting material for many chemicals. Methane also comes from
____________, coal mining, natural gas fumes, landfills and wood burning.
In the last 200 years methane levels have increased by _____%.
• ________ or chlorofluorocarbons, were _________ naturally in the air. This
gas was used mostly in aerosol ____________, (spray paint and hair spray),
as a refrigerant, for _____________, cleaning solvents and packing
materials. Using CFCs in aerosol sprays has now been ____________ in the
United States and most other parts of the world.
• _______________ (N2O) is emitted during agricultural and industrial
activities and during the burning of solid waste and fossil fuels. In the last
200 years nitrous oxide levels have increased by ______%.
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• Each greenhouse gas differs in its ability to absorb heat in the atmosphere.
_______ are the most heat-absorbent. Methane traps over _____ times more
heat per molecule than carbon dioxide. Nitrous oxide absorbs ____ times
more heat per molecule than carbon dioxide.
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Sources and Sinks
The elements that compose greenhouse gases, (carbon, oxygen, nitrogen,
etc.), normally ________ through the environment between sources and
sinks freely.
______________ release elements to the atmosphere.
______________ store the elements.
Soil, oceans and trees tend to act as natural ________ for carbon. Each year
hundreds of __________ of tons of CO2 are absorbed by soils, oceans and
trees. When trees are cut down and burned, the stored carbon is __________
into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. The burning of trees is a carbon
source.
Consequences of Too Many Greenhouse Gases
• If the climate cycle were to follow its ___________ course, in a few
thousand years, the Earth would start sliding into another _________. Our
activities threaten to send the climate speeding toward global warming. The
build-up of _________________ and other gases have already enhanced the
Earth’s greenhouse effect. It may take ________ ____________to feel the
warming because atmospheric temperatures will rise significantly only after
the oceans of the world have slowly warmed.
What is global warming?
Global warming is the __________ of the planet including the atmosphere,
oceans and land.
Evidence of Global Warming…
• The latest data from the World Meteorological Organization shows that
______, 1998, 2002, 2003 and 2004 have been the five warmest years on
record, (warmest was 2005).
• The top ___ warmest years have occurred since 1987, nine of them since
______.
• The 1990’s was the warmest _________.
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• The ________ was the warmest century during the last 1,000 years.
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Global Warming and Wisconsin
Historical records indicate the average global temperature increased by
______________ 0F between 1890 and 1990.
Scientists predict the temperature may rise another __________ 0F in the
next 100 years.
Such increases have occurred before but never over such a short time span.
In fact, the average global temperature has risen more in the last century
than at any time in the past _____________ years.
Scenarios Wisconsin could face:
___________ winters and _______ summers with longer, hotter and more
frequent heat waves
Weather and climate changes that could require farmers to raise different
_________
Dairy cattle stressed by _______ exhaustion and growing _______
populations
Poor air quality and higher concentrations of ground-level ______, an air
pollutant that causes severe health problems
Warmer and more shallow _____________ – conditions that could hurt
populations of cold-water fish like trout
Denser algae blooms and lower __________ levels in ponds and lakes
More frequent _________, droughts, forest fires and damaging storms
Changes in ________ species that could affect the forestry industry and
wildlife populations
Increases in disease-carrying __________ populations
All of these potential changes are just that: ___________. It is difficult to
predict what an increase in global temperature might bring.
Global Warming and Sea Level Rise
• One of the most significant potential impacts of climate change is ___
____________. It may cause flooding of coastal areas and islands. As global
temperatures increase, sea level rise is expected to accelerate due to
______________ of the ocean and melting of glaciers. Over the last 100
years, the global sea level has risen by about ________ cm. On this time
scale, thermal expansion of the oceans may account for about _____ cm of
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the sea level rise, while the retreat of glaciers and ice caps may account for
another ___ cm. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
estimates that sea level will rise ___ ___ cm by the year 2100. A recent EPA
study estimated that global sea level has a 50 percent chance of rising ___
cm (1-1/2 ft) by the year 2100, but a 1-in-100 chance of a rise of about ____
cm (over 3-1/2 ft).
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How Can You Help?
Use ______ energy
Tune-up your _______
Insulate your ________
Using energy-efficient _____________
Purchase items with ___________, recyclable, or reduced packaging.
Using alternative _______ sources. _______ cars, which use electricity from
batteries along with gasoline for power are an excellent choice.
Global Uncertainty
There is no longer much dispute over whether an ___________ in global
temperature will affect global climate. Exactly how and why the ________ will
change are topics for debate.
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