Geog 1300E- Exam 1 Questions with Correct Answers
Fahrenheit - Answers Mercury thermometer, used based on the temp. range in Europe. 0 Degrees is
coldest air temp. 100 Degrees is hottest human body temp.
Celsius - Answers Thermometer based on the freezing and boiling points of water, 0 degrees water
freezes
Kelvin - Answers Scientific unit for temp., 0 degree is the absolute zero, meaning no atomic motion
Time Scale - Answers the time allowed for or taken by a process or sequence of events
Sink Analogy - Answers Incoming=outgoing
Water temperature remains constant
Greenhouse Effect - Answers Natural situation in which heat is retained in Earth's atmosphere by carbon
dioxide, methane, water vapor, and other gases. Certain gases interact with Earth's heat radiation
Drivers - Answers The forcing mechanisms that change the energy in the system
Response Time - Answers Time it takes for drivers to move the system 1/2 way to its equilibrium
Fast Response - Answers System components will respond with larger amplitude and similar phase to
drivers
Slow Response - Answers System components will respond with smaller amplitude and different phase
to drivers
Feedbacks - Answers Can occur in a system when the response to an initial driver itself changes the
system
Positive Feedback - Answers Amplifies the initial response (making the total response larger)
Negative Feedback - Answers Reduces the initial response (making the total response smaller) stabilizing
the system
In what ways are the Celsius and Kelvin temperature scales more convenient than the Fahrenheit scale?
- Answers Farenheit uses thermometer based on the temp. range in Europe, does not take in to account
the boiling and freezing points of water
In what way is Earth more habitable than its sister terrestrial planets? Why? - Answers Earth has 70%
water and life exists anywhere, has water in all three states (solid, liquid, gas) while Mars has
solid/gaseous and Venus has gas
Give an example of this scenario "climate is like a deck of cards, and weather is a hand that it is dealt" -
Answers 22,000 years ago Hartford County would have been an ice sheet, Earth was 6 degrees --> very
, different from the weather that we see today. Climate constrains the kind of weather a region can
experience.
Of the 4.5 billion years of Earth's history, how much of it will we discuss in this course? - Answers We'll
consider the past 600M years or so
In what ways does climate science differ from traditional science such as chemistry or biology? -
Answers It doesn't focus on just chemistry or just biology, it takes into account everything going on at
Earth's surface, global climate, the sun, the atmosphere, etc.
How does climate forcing differ from climate response? - Answers Climate forcing deals with sunlight
being absorbed by the Earth and energy being radiated back into space, while climate response focuses
on the amount of warming in the atmosphere due to specific aspects in the environment
What is the total range of time scales over which these responses vary? - Answers Can be 10K-100,000K
years
Do positive feedbacks always make the climate warmer? - Answers No, they do not always make the
climate warmer. If it is cold due to ice, then the positive feedback will make it cold. If there is hot water,
then the positive feedback will make it hotter.
use the sink analogy to explain how Earth's radiation balance defines its temperature - Answers The
incoming must always equal the outgoing, if this doesn't occur, then the water temperature on Earth
slowly rises and the balance will be off
Use sink analogy to explain the greenhouse effect - Answers If the infrared heat loss to space is equal to
the incoming sunlight, Earth's temperature remains constant. Like in the sink analogy, greenhouse gases
reduce heat loss to space, and require that temperatures increase until outgoing infrared = incoming
sunlight
What assumptions are we making when we do the simplest calculation of Earth's temperature using the
radiative energy balance model? - Answers That the incoming = the outgoing, and that the earth's global
average temperature has not increased
What can a scientist infer about the calculated temperature being much colder than the observed? -
Answers The atmosphere must be warming the planets, since with no atmosphere Earth would be
colder than they are observed to actually be
What is a climate system component that responds fast to drivers? - Answers the atmosphere, land
surface, ocean surface, vegetation, sea ice
What is a climate system component that responds slow to drivers? - Answers Mountain glaciers, deep
ocean, ice sheets
What determines the amplitude of response to forcing? - Answers The amplitude of response depends
on the frequency of forcing
Fahrenheit - Answers Mercury thermometer, used based on the temp. range in Europe. 0 Degrees is
coldest air temp. 100 Degrees is hottest human body temp.
Celsius - Answers Thermometer based on the freezing and boiling points of water, 0 degrees water
freezes
Kelvin - Answers Scientific unit for temp., 0 degree is the absolute zero, meaning no atomic motion
Time Scale - Answers the time allowed for or taken by a process or sequence of events
Sink Analogy - Answers Incoming=outgoing
Water temperature remains constant
Greenhouse Effect - Answers Natural situation in which heat is retained in Earth's atmosphere by carbon
dioxide, methane, water vapor, and other gases. Certain gases interact with Earth's heat radiation
Drivers - Answers The forcing mechanisms that change the energy in the system
Response Time - Answers Time it takes for drivers to move the system 1/2 way to its equilibrium
Fast Response - Answers System components will respond with larger amplitude and similar phase to
drivers
Slow Response - Answers System components will respond with smaller amplitude and different phase
to drivers
Feedbacks - Answers Can occur in a system when the response to an initial driver itself changes the
system
Positive Feedback - Answers Amplifies the initial response (making the total response larger)
Negative Feedback - Answers Reduces the initial response (making the total response smaller) stabilizing
the system
In what ways are the Celsius and Kelvin temperature scales more convenient than the Fahrenheit scale?
- Answers Farenheit uses thermometer based on the temp. range in Europe, does not take in to account
the boiling and freezing points of water
In what way is Earth more habitable than its sister terrestrial planets? Why? - Answers Earth has 70%
water and life exists anywhere, has water in all three states (solid, liquid, gas) while Mars has
solid/gaseous and Venus has gas
Give an example of this scenario "climate is like a deck of cards, and weather is a hand that it is dealt" -
Answers 22,000 years ago Hartford County would have been an ice sheet, Earth was 6 degrees --> very
, different from the weather that we see today. Climate constrains the kind of weather a region can
experience.
Of the 4.5 billion years of Earth's history, how much of it will we discuss in this course? - Answers We'll
consider the past 600M years or so
In what ways does climate science differ from traditional science such as chemistry or biology? -
Answers It doesn't focus on just chemistry or just biology, it takes into account everything going on at
Earth's surface, global climate, the sun, the atmosphere, etc.
How does climate forcing differ from climate response? - Answers Climate forcing deals with sunlight
being absorbed by the Earth and energy being radiated back into space, while climate response focuses
on the amount of warming in the atmosphere due to specific aspects in the environment
What is the total range of time scales over which these responses vary? - Answers Can be 10K-100,000K
years
Do positive feedbacks always make the climate warmer? - Answers No, they do not always make the
climate warmer. If it is cold due to ice, then the positive feedback will make it cold. If there is hot water,
then the positive feedback will make it hotter.
use the sink analogy to explain how Earth's radiation balance defines its temperature - Answers The
incoming must always equal the outgoing, if this doesn't occur, then the water temperature on Earth
slowly rises and the balance will be off
Use sink analogy to explain the greenhouse effect - Answers If the infrared heat loss to space is equal to
the incoming sunlight, Earth's temperature remains constant. Like in the sink analogy, greenhouse gases
reduce heat loss to space, and require that temperatures increase until outgoing infrared = incoming
sunlight
What assumptions are we making when we do the simplest calculation of Earth's temperature using the
radiative energy balance model? - Answers That the incoming = the outgoing, and that the earth's global
average temperature has not increased
What can a scientist infer about the calculated temperature being much colder than the observed? -
Answers The atmosphere must be warming the planets, since with no atmosphere Earth would be
colder than they are observed to actually be
What is a climate system component that responds fast to drivers? - Answers the atmosphere, land
surface, ocean surface, vegetation, sea ice
What is a climate system component that responds slow to drivers? - Answers Mountain glaciers, deep
ocean, ice sheets
What determines the amplitude of response to forcing? - Answers The amplitude of response depends
on the frequency of forcing
