Seasons of Change 22 September 2014

Why do we even have seasons? Earth has an apogee and a perigee that are NOT related to seasons.

Why do we even have seasons? Earth is tilted 23.5o with respect to its orbit around the sun.

Summer solstice – June 21 – northern hemisphere tilted towards Sol.

Summer - the intensity of radiation is greater gecause the angle of incidence is lower.

Because of the Earth’s tilt, different latitudes receive different amounts of solar radiation.

The sun’s energy entering Earth’s atmosphere is incoming solar radiation – insolation.

Differential heating refers to the different amounts of radiation that each latitude receives.

Differential heating is responsible for climate patterns on Terra.

Sol’s energy impacts oceans, clouds, and land Sol’s energy impacts oceans, clouds, and land. This energy excites air molecules causing them to move which results in wind.

Electromagnetic radiation – energy transfer in the form of electric and magnetic fields. It does not require a medium to travel through.

Electromagnetic Spectrum

Things to Remember Regarding EM Spectrum: Human eye sees 400 – 700 nm (violet to red). Short wavelength (λ) means more energy. Small frequency means more energy.

Albedo is the measure of the reflectivity a surface has.

Remember ice has a greater albedo than liquid water. Which means Remember ice has a greater albedo than liquid water. Which means??? The ocean is the largest absorber of radiation.