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Factors that contribute to climate change - Noah Chang - Coggle Diagram
Factors that contribute to climate change - Noah Chang
Natural Effects
Solar Radiation
Solar Radiation
Solar radiation is the energy emitted by the Sun in the form of waves, including visible light, ultraviolet, and infrared energy. It drives Earth’s climate system by providing the heat and energy necessary for weather patterns, ocean currents, and the water cycle.
Some of the heat is reflected by Earth's atmosphere. Some of it hits GHGs on the way in. The rest that hits the Earth is absorbed and slowly emitted over the course of time. GHGs absorb some of the remitted energy and emit some heat back to Earth and some back into space.
El Nino/La Nina
El Niño
El Niño is a climate pattern where warmer-than-average sea surface temperatures develop in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean, disrupting normal weather patterns. It often leads to heavy rainfall and flooding in some regions (e.g., South America) and droughts in others (e.g., Australia and Southeast Asia), along with temperature increases.
La Niña
La Niña is the opposite phase of El Niño, characterized by cooler-than-average sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean. It intensifies normal weather patterns, bringing increased rainfall to regions like Australia and Southeast Asia, while causing drier conditions in areas such as South America.
Volcanic Activity
Volcanic activity affects solar radiation by releasing large amounts of ash and gases, like sulfur dioxide, into the atmosphere. These particles can block sunlight and reflect it back into space, causing temporary cooling of Earth’s surface, while also influencing weather patterns globally.
Milankovitch Cycles
Axial Tilt (Obliquity)
Axial tilt refers to the angle of Earth’s axis relative to its orbital plane, which varies between 22.1° and 24.5° over approximately 41,000 years. Greater tilt amplifies seasonal temperature differences, while lesser tilt leads to less extreme temperatures, significantly impacting the intensity of seasons and climate.
Precession (Wobble of Earth’s Axis)
Precession is the slow wobble of Earth’s axis. It completes a cycle roughly every 26,000 years. This wobble shifts the timing of seasons in Earth’s orbit, influencing the intensity of summer and winter in different hemispheres over time.
Eccentricity (Shape of Earth’s Orbit)
Eccentricity describes the changes in the shape of Earth’s orbit around the Sun from more circular to more elliptical over a cycle of about 100,000 years. These changes affect the distance between Earth and the Sun. This changes the amount of solar energy reaching Earth.
Greenhouse Gases
Greenhouse gases (GHGs) trap heat in Earth’s atmosphere, creating the greenhouse effect, which keeps the planet warm enough to support life. However, human activities are increasing GHG levels, intensifying global warming and disrupting natural climate patterns.
Carbon Dioxide
Carbon dioxide is the most significant GHG released by burning fossil fuels for energy, such as in power plants, vehicles, and factories. Deforestation worsens CO₂ levels by reducing the number of trees that absorb it from the atmosphere.
Methane
Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas that traps heat far more effectively than CO₂, though it is present in smaller amounts. It is released during livestock digestion, rice farming, and from decomposing organic waste in landfills.
Nitrous Oxide
Nitrous oxide is a potent GHG released from fertilizers used in agriculture and during the combustion of fossil fuels. It has a much higher heat-trapping ability than CO₂ and also contributes to the depletion of the ozone layer.
Water Vapour
Water vapor is the most abundant greenhouse gas and amplifies the greenhouse effect as warmer temperatures lead to more evaporation. Although natural, its levels increase indirectly as global temperatures rise due to other GHGs.
CFCs
Fluorinated gases, such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), are synthetic gases used in refrigeration and industrial processes. Though present in small quantities, they are extremely potent and have long atmospheric lifetimes, contributing significantly to global warming.
Feedback Loops
Permafrost Melting
As temperatures rise, permafrost thaws, releasing stored greenhouse gases like methane and carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. This increase in greenhouse gases further warms the planet, causing even more permafrost to thaw, intensifying the feedback loop.
Plant Growth
Higher levels of carbon dioxide can stimulate plant growth, which helps absorb more CO₂ from the atmosphere. As vegetation expands, it may help offset some of the warming by acting as a natural carbon sink, although this is limited by other environmental changes.
Albedo Effect
As the Arctic ice melts due to rising temperatures, the Earth’s surface becomes less reflective, or has a lower albedo, meaning it absorbs more solar energy instead of reflecting it. This additional heat further accelerates the melting of ice, leading to a cycle where the loss of ice increases warming and causes even more ice to melt.
Human Activities
Fossil Fuels
Burning fossil fuels like coal, oil, and natural gas for energy releases large amounts of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. These emissions trap heat in the atmosphere, driving global warming and changing weather patterns.
Deforestation
Deforestation removes trees that absorb carbon dioxide, increasing the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. It also disrupts ecosystems and contributes to soil erosion and biodiversity loss.
Agriculture
Agriculture contributes to climate change through methane emissions from livestock and nitrous oxide from fertilizers. Clearing land for farming also leads to deforestation, reducing the planet’s ability to absorb carbon dioxide.
Transport
Transportation produces significant emissions by burning fossil fuels in cars, trucks, planes, and ships. This increases air pollution and contributes to the buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
