CLIMATE CHANGE

Factors influencing impact of

greenhouse gasses
1. Ability to absorb longwave radiation
2. Concentration within the atmosphere
B
C
impact of greenhouse gasses
1. Increase in global temperatures
2. Extreme weather conditions
B
B
 The impact of a
greenhouse gasses
depends on 2 factors.
What are they?
 1. Ability to absorb longwave radiation

2. Concentration within the atmosphere

A
 What are the
consequences of
the enhanced
greenhouse effect ?
 1. Ocean acidification

2. Increase in global temperatures

C
A
The Greenhouse
Debate
1. Climate has changed in the past and current trends merely reflect the
Earth’s natural climatic cycle
Climate changes do not occur as abruptly as
what is seen currently.

Atmospheric CO2 levels positively correlate to

average global temperatures and are currently at
the highest levels ever recorded

Abrupt global warming has always resulted in

highly destructive to life (e.g. Permian mass
extinction)
2.Increases in greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere will not
be enough to cause significant climate change
As of 2009, there were only ~39 The reason why carbon dioxide is so
molecules of carbon dioxide per important to the environment is because
100,000 molecules in the atmosphere there is so little of it

While we may double atmospheric CO2 Living things require constant internal
levels by the end of the century, environments (homeostasis) – small external
doubling a small number still produces changes can have big impacts on viability
a small number
3. Climate change is being caused by solar activity and the effect of
greenhouse gas emissions is negligible
Over the last 35 years the sun has shown
More radiation = warmer temperatures a slight cooling trend, however average
global temperatures have increased

Warmer temperatures may be caused by There is no evidence to support a

an increase in solar influx by the sun (as correlation between solar irradiance
determined by the number of sunspots) and current global temperature trends