CLIMATE CHANGE DIFFERENT DATA DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES

CLIMATE Definitions Climate change history Controversy Natural Cycles Human activity

VOCABULARY Climate Geologic Time Scale  Pre-Cambrian  Paleozoic  Mesozoic  Cenozoic  Teriary  Quaternary Ice core sampling Logarithmic Anomaly El Nino La Nina ENSO Sunspot Cycles Maunder Minimum Milankovitch Cycles

CLIMATE - DEFINITION Definition: The patterns of temperature and precipitation in a region over time (from 30 years to millions of years) How Researched: gas bubbles in layers of ice cores (obtained by drilling into glaciers and ice sheets) reveal time periods of atmospheric disturbance such as volcanic eruptions, CO 2 concentration, and temperature variations

CLIMATE CHANGE HISTORY / CONTROVERSY Once considered unquestionable, arguments are reasoned from different perspectives depending on: TIME FRAME METHODOLOGY DATA INTERPRETATION CAUSES MOTIVATION

4.5 BILLION YEARS

600 MILLION YEARS

100 MILLION YEARS – LOGARITHMIC REPRESENT- ATION

600,000 YEARS

460,000 YEARS

400,000 YEARS

5000 YEARS

1000 YEARS – ANOMALY METHOD

PAST 150 YEARS – “HOCKEY STICK”

SUNSPOT CYCLE – AND ARCTIC AIR TEMP. There is also debate about the effects of sunspots on various aspects of climate

CORRELATION TO MAGNETIC STORMS

15 YEARS

SUNSPOTS AND HURRICANES

SUNSPOTS AND CLIMATE The “Maunder Minimum” from mid-1600s to 1700 correlates to the “Little Ice Age” experienced in Europe. Astronomers have noted that the current solar cycle shows fewer sunspots than the prior solar cycle.

MILANKOVITCH CYCLES THEORY STATES: Changes in Earth’s axis disturb the distribution and intensity of solar energy reaching Earth

ENSO ENSO – 3-5 YEAR EL NINO SOUTHERN OSCILLATION CYCLE El Nino is the familiar name for a disturbance in sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in the Pacific Ocean, is named for the December phenomenon occurring along the west coast of South America. ENSO is a 3-5 year cycle that includes both warming and cooling in tropical oceans.

EL NINO YEAR During an El Nino year, SSTs along the coast are warmer than usual. This prevents the upwelling of nutrient rich deep ocean water that is required to feed the fish population that reproduces there.. Warm waters mean greater rainfall in the southern hemisphere. But the northern hemisphere experiences a warmer, drier year as moist air is pulled westward by the Jet Stream. Climate effects ripple throughout the global climate system. Data for 2013 show only a relatively small increase in temperatures.

LA NINA During a La Nina year, SSTs along the coast are colder than usual in the Eastern Pacific (southern Hemisphere). This allows upwelling, but the effects ripple throughout the global climate system. Trade winds intensify. South American experiences drought. Wetter years occur in North America and storms increase in intensity in Asia.

HUMAN IMPACT

HUMAN IMPACT ON THE ATMOSPHERE Human activityGases emittedImpact on atmosphere / climate Burning Fossil fuels Agriculture Deforestation Industrial processes Look it up!

POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS Look it up! See these articles and continue searching! ENERGY EFFICIENCY - COMMERCIAL INTERNATIONAL CLIMATE CHANGE TREATIES / TALKS LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACTION cities/?section=money_news_international