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Climate Crisis - Coggle Diagram

- - - - evaporation of water from rainforests -> moisture in air -> cloud formation -> rainfall
      - a reinforcing cycle: hot/wet climate is reinforced by types of vegetation or forest there
      - loss of forest = reduction in rainfall, climate is interrupted by damaging forests
  - - - mainly depends on the distributions of energy from the sun and of land/ocean
        
        oceans have higher heat capacity, land heats and cools quicker
        
        mountain ranges - affect weather patterns and monsoon systems
        
        ocean circulation and where the continents are affects where warm and cold water flows.
        
        currents regulate global climate, helping to counteract the uneven distribution of solar radiation reaching Earth's surface.
      - climate types are closely related with biomes and ecosystems
    - - corresponds with changing levels of GHGs, especially carbon dioxide
      - GHGs are good at absorbing heat energy that Earth is reflecting back into space
    - - can be initiated by changes in energy received from the sun
        
        setting off a chain of reactions
      - or by changes in the distribution of land / ocean
      - all else equal, more CO2 = stronger GH effect, and higher temps
    - - many examples of past changes in CO2 and climate which happened entirely naturally, led to big ecological changes
      - CO2 and climate change now are cause by human activities
        
        land cover change and fossil fuel burning
      - changes happening very quickly and could end up being catastrophic
  - - - variations
        
        Obliquity - tilt of the axis of rotation
        
        Precession - orientation - relative to the rest of space
        
        Eccentricity
        
        the extent to which the orbit is elliptical varies over many years
      - subtle variations in the characteristics of Earth's Orbit -> variations in the distribution of solar energy across Earth's surface
        
        doesn't change to total amount received, just alters the amount received at different times and altitudes
      - trigger switches between glacial and interglacial conditions
        
        affects growth and melting of ice sheets in polar regions
      - GHG variations are a response to the orbital variations
        
        changes in ice sheets and orbit -> changes in ocean circulation
        
        therefore affect how much carbon is stored in the ocean / released into the atmosphere
    - - variations in Earths orbit have caused global temperature variations of ~5C
      - corresponds closely with variations of CO2 between 180-280 parts per million
        (how many CO2 molecules per million air molecules)
      - last glacial maximum was ~ 2000 years ago
        
        with water locked up in sheets, sea level was 120m lower
        
        larger land mass exposed - Sundaland
        
        implications of biology:
        where are rainforests?
        migration and fossil locations?
        human dispersal and distribution?
      - we've probably put off the next glacial period for the amount of CO2 emitted and staying in the air. glacial periods would happen naturally if we weren't also affecting the climate
- - - - due to thermal expansion: warmer = molecules increase in size
      - melting ice
  - - - CO2 representative concentration pathways (RCP): *see notes for diagram (shows how different actions can lead to different outcomes)
    - - RCP 8.5: large emissions, ~ 4C warming
      - RCP 2.6: Low CO2 emissions, ~1.5C warming
      - these are climate models used to project warming to 2100
  - - - some tropical coastal areas face up to 6 simultaneous hazards: heatwaves, storms, sea level rise etc.
      - our food, water and health can all be impacted by climate hazards (see notes for diagram on RCP 8.5)
- - - - but not asked about how they're willing to contribute, too general
      - diet, lifestyle, consumption restrictions
      - do survey respondents have enough info to consider all the profound implication of reducing GHG emissions?
- - - - a large percentage of carbon locked up in the lithosphere, from fossil fuels
      - now stored carbon being released into the atmosphere
    - - deforestation, destruction of habitat
      - decreased the amount of CO2 being taken in by photosynthesis and stored in plants