Global Climate Change Student Guide - website optimised for IE4+ 1024x768


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Contents

Introduction

Climate System

Causes of Climate Change

Empirical Study of Climate

Climate Modelling

Palaeoclimatic Change

Contemporary Climate Change

Epilogue
Appendix
References

 

1.2.6. Summary

It is the fluxes principally of energy but also of moisture, momentum and mass, which determine the state of our climate. Factors which influence these on a global scale may be regarded as causes of global climate change. So far, however, only the fluxes in and out of and within the atmosphere have been considered. In the introduction, it was highlighted that the atmosphere forms just one, albeit, major component of the climate system. Before looking at the causes of global climate change then, it is worth devoting a little time to the other components of the climate system (the oceans, cryosphere, biosphere and geosphere), and how the fluxes of energy, moisture momentum and mass operate between them.

  Introduction

The Atmosphere
 -Composition
  ·Carbon dioxide
  ·Methane
  ·Nitrous oxide
  ·Ozone
  ·Chlorofluorocarbons
  ·Other Trace Gases
  ·Aerosols
 -Vertical Structure
 -Radiation Laws
 -Energy Budget
 -Energy Transfers
 -Summary

The Climate System
 -Oceans
 -Cryosphere
 -Biosphere
 -Geosphere

Conclusion