Human activities are believed to be causing climate change by increasing the carbon dioxide concentration in the air. Since the Industrial Revolution, CO2 emissions have been increasing with combustion of fossil fuels and burning of wood removed by deforestation. It is postulated that rising atmospheric concentrations of this gas, as well as other greenhouse gases, could raise the global mean temperature by 1.4oC to 5.8oC by the year 2100.
Using your textbook, and any useful website (here are two):
http://www.ucar.edu/learn/1_3_1.htm
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ice/greenhouse.html
Answer the following questions and please email to me with the answers to short answer questions.
- What are the main sources of greenhouse gases, especially CO2?
- Not all the CO2 released to the atmosphere remains there- what happens to the rest?
- Why is CO2 called a greenhouse gas?
- How do greenhouse gases contribute to global warming?
- How might changes in climate affect the distribution of plant and animal species?
- How is sea level currently changing?
- How will global warming affect sea levels?
- How might changing sea levels influence human populations?
- What kinds of actions can you take to reduce your “carbon footprint”
Sample Solution
