Due in Class, Friday, March 2
1) List and describe (in one informative sentence for each) TEN impacts
of ENSO on
climate in different parts of the world. For
each one, list the source of your
information. An interesting way to approach
this problem is to go to www.google.com
and type in (el nino, xxxxx), where xxxxx is a continent,
country or state.
2) Chlorofluorocarbons (CFC's) are mostly produced and released in the
northern
hemisphere, and sunlight is strongest in the tropics.
Why, then, does the most
dramatic ozone depletion occur over Antarctica?
Be sure to discuss the roles of
(a) global atmospheric circulation,
(b) the chemical changes CFCs undergo,
(c) the role of polar stratospheric clouds,
(d) meteorological differences between the southern
polar stratosphere and the
northern polar
stratosphere.
3) Name three greenhouse gases other than H2O and CO2.
What are their sources and
sinks? Which ones are produced exclusively
by human activities? Why are most
greenhouse gases far more effective than CO2,
molecule for molecule, at trapping
infrared radiation?
4) What are the main factors considered in projecting future sea level rise?
5) Pretend you are an attorney arguing in court that (a) humans
are influencing
climate (b) humans are not influencing climate.
What main pieces of evidence
would you bring to bear for each argument?
Which one do you believe?