Earth's Changing Climate

What can humans do to reduce climate change?

• Nothing

• Cut down trees

• Ride bikes instead of cars

• Eat lots of hot chips

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What is one reason that carbon dioxide is increasing in the atmosphere today?

• There are more volcanoes than there were in the past.

• People are riding bicycles instead of driving cars.

• There are more people doing things that use combustion.

• People are using solar power.

• All of the above.

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If methane decreased, . . .

• there would be more energy in the Earth system and more energy absorbed by Earth’s surface, because more energy would enter than exit.

• there would be more energy in the Earth system and more energy absorbed by Earth’s surface, because less energy would enter than exit.

• there would be less energy in the Earth system and less energy absorbed by Earth’s surface, because less energy would enter than exit.

• there would be less energy in the Earth system and less energy absorbed by Earth’s surface, because more energy would enter than exit.

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Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increased. How did energy in the Earth system change during this time?

• There was more energy in the Earth system and more energy absorbed by Earth’s surface, because less energy entered than exited.

• There was more energy in the Earth system and more energy absorbed by Earth’s surface, because more energy entered than exited.

• There was less energy in the Earth system and less energy absorbed by Earth’s surface, because more energy entered than exited.

• There was less energy in the Earth system and less energy absorbed by Earth’s surface, because less energy entered than exited.

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Climate researchers in Greenland use ice core samples to tell them about methane in the atmosphere in the past. Researchers found a sample that showed a time period when methane in the atmosphere increased.

What happened to the amount of energy absorbed by Earth’s surface during this time?

• stayed at a constant level

• changed unpredictably

• increased

• decreased

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A climatologist was working with a computer simulation that models Earth’s climate and atmosphere. She set up the controls of the simulation to decrease the amount of methane in the atmosphere. When methane decreases, the amount of energy absorbed by Earth’s surface should . . .

• change unpredictably

• stay at a constant level

• increase

• decrease

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How did energy in the Earth system change during this time?

• More energy in the Earth system and more energy absorbed by Earth’s surface --> more energy entered than exited.

• Less energy in the Earth system and less energy absorbed by Earth’s surface --> less energy entered than exited

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There are some bacteria that release methane into the atmosphere. Scientists think that if the number of these bacteria decreased, the amount of methane in the atmosphere would decrease.

If methane in the atmosphere decreases, energy in the Earth system would . . .

• Decrease, because less energy would enter than exit.

• Decrease, because more energy would enter than exit.

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Some scientists found that millions of years ago, there was a time when the number of trees increased very quickly, leading to a decrease in the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

During this time, the amount of energy absorbed by Earth’s surface . . .

• Increased

• Decreased

• stayed at a constant level

• changed unpredictably

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Scientists have tools that measure the amount of energy entering and exiting the Earth system. Recently, more energy entered the system than exited.

What might scientists expect to see in the atmosphere?

• Methane increased, leading to more energy in the Earth system and more energy absorbed by Earth’s surface.

• Methane decreased, leading to less energy in the Earth system and less energy absorbed by Earth’s surface.

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