Images and Figures to Represent Climate Change

The earth’s atmosphere that surrounds our planet includes gases called greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and water vapor. Generally speaking, looking at the pre-industrial atmosphere, if you don't consider water vapor (a larger variable gas), the atmosphere is about 78% Nitrogen and 21% Oxygen. So, 99% of the atmosphere is accounted for in those two gases. The last one percent includes various trace gases, some are greenhouse gases, and some are not.

The Earth is surrounded by a thin layer of gasses we call greenhouse gases. These gases are what make up our Atmosphere. Carbon dioxide Methane Water vapor Nitrous oxide Ozone Hydrofluorcarbons Chloroflurocarbons Sulfur hexafluoride Nitrogen triflouride Black carbon Source: NASA

The greenhouse effect is a natural process that makes the earth habitable.

Greenhouse gases allow heat from the sun to enter the atmosphere Greenhouse gases allow heat from the sun to enter the atmosphere. Some of this heat is absorbed and some of it is reflected back. Some of the heat is reflected into space, and some of it is held in by greenhouse gases.

The thickness of the atmosphere and the concentration of the gases influences the surface temperature on the planet. Source: Will Steger Foundation, Elizabeth Andre

The Greenhouse Gas carbon dioxide (CO2) has increased from 280 parts per million before 1870 and the industrial revolution, to over 400 parts per million today. This information was determined by researchers by taking ice cores from Antarctica and measuring the amounts of carbon dioxide trapped in air bubbles at different heights on the core that correspond to periods of time. Since 1958, carbon dioxide measurements have been taken from on top of Mauna Loa, a volcano in Hawaii.

This graph, based on the comparison of atmospheric samples contained in ice cores and more recent direct measurements, provides evidence that atmospheric CO2 has increased since the Industrial Revolution. (Source: NOAA)

The burning of fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, as well as land use changes from deforestation and land clearing. Fossil fuels are burned in the process of electricity production, industrial processes and the driving of vehicles. Fossil fuels include natural gas, oil and coal.

How Global Warming Works Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural gas) © 2007National Wildlife Federation

Throughout the history of the planet Earth, there have been increases and decreases in global average temperature. Although there have been periods of natural warming in the past, scientists are especially concerned about what is happening today because there is a change in temperature that has been rapid in the last 100 years, rather than over hundreds or thousands of years.

www.skepticalscience.com

This increase in temperature has an effect on Minnesota’s climate as a whole, and has enormous implications for Minnesota. The results have been and continue to be experienced across Minnesota’s biomes in all living communities of organisms, including humans. These changes can be seen around the world.

USGRCP - National Arbor Day Foundation Plant Hardiness Zones 2100

Miller-Rushing and Primack. 2008. Ecology Differences in response rates among a variety of plants and animals. Suggests great potential for phenological mismatches. Miller-Rushing and Primack. 2008. Ecology

Changes in the Great Lakes

There are climate change solutions and students can be part of the solution.

Minnesota’s Changing Climate Lesson 5: What Does the Data Show?

Minnesota’s Changing Climate: Lesson 5 Gradual approach to reading figures, understanding data and how you can show data

Take out the objects from your bag. Based on what you know, how might these objects be related to climate change? What might they represent?

Take the full page figures out of your bag. What do the figures tell you? Which object is connected to which graph? Explain how the graph and the object are connected.

Come up with your own title for each graph.

Take the large envelope out of your bag Take the large envelope out of your bag. Match the titles inside with the appropriate graph.

Take the small envelope out of the bag. Which statements correspond with which figure? (At this point, don’t worry whether they are true or false).

Determine which statements are true and which statements are false. Come up with your own true and false statements for each figure.

Summarize what you learned to share with the group as a whole.

National Climate Assessment Using the NCA book and the National Climate Assessment website answer some of the guiding questions for your region found: http://bit.ly/1p2ebSv The National Climate Assessment can be accessed at: http://nca2014.globalchange.gov/