WWK: The effects of changing ocean temperatures involving weather and biodiversity.

Coral Bleaching• Coral bleaching occurs when ocean water

temperatures get warmer, and the oxygen content reduces, causing corals to turn white (bleached). The heat effects the tiny algae which live inside the corals and supply them with food. The stress of the heat damages the algae and kills the coral.

• Coral reefs are extremely important for biodiversity, providing homes to over 25 percent of marine life.

Algal Growth• Algal growth happens when an ecosystem is out

of balance. It’s usually cause by too many nutrients and a lack of oxygen.

• During daylight, algae take carbon dioxide from the pond and release oxygen, but at night, the algae begin taking the pond’s oxygen to live.

• Cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae, have been linked to causing digestive, neurological, skin diseases and fatal liver disease for humans.

Sea Level• During the 20th century, sea level rose about 15-20

centimeters (1.5 to 2 mm/year), with the rate at the end of the century greater then the earlier part.

• Satellite’s have seen over the past decade that the rate has increased to about 3.1 mm/year. It’s likely that it will keep increasing.

• There are 3 major processes where global warming directly affects sea level:

- water expands as it’s temperature increases- the melting of glaciers and ice caps-the loss of ice mass from Greenland and Antarctica

• The world’s oceans have absorbed about 20 times as much heat as the atmosphere over the past half-century.

Hurricane Intensity• Hurricanes, typhoons, and cyclones have always

been bad, but global warming could have made it worse. Sea level is rising, and will keep rising as ocean’s get warmer and more glaciers melt.

• Rising sea levels mean higher storm surges, which increases coastal flooding. Also, heavy rains can extend hundreds of miles inland, increasing the risk of flooding.

Biodiversity• Biodiversity is the diversity among and within

plant and animal species in an environment. Ecosystems are already showing negative impacts under current levels of climate change.

• At threat of extinction are:- 1 out of 8 birds- 1 out of 4 mammals- 6 out of 7 marine turtles- 1 out of 3 amphibians

• 75 percent of the world’s fisheries are fully or overly exploited.

• 1/3 of corals around the world are threatened with extinction.

Evaporation• Water particles move into the air and travel up,

forming clouds. With the rise in ocean temperature, there will be an increase in the rate at which the ocean water evaporates.

WWK: The climate zones of the World

Low latitude climates• Rainforests: a tropical forest made of tall,

densely growing evergreen trees. An average of 50 to 260 inches of rain falls yearly. The temperature stays between 68 and 93 °F. Rainforests cover less than 6% of Earth's land surface. Scientists estimate that more than half of all the world's plant and animal species live in tropical rain forests. Tropical rainforests produce 40% of Earth's oxygen.

• Savanna’s: A savanna is a rolling grassland scattered with shrubs and isolated trees. Savannas are found mainly in Africa, Australia, and India.

• Deserts: a very arid region with little rainfall, and not very many plants. The only animals they have that can survive have the ability to burrow under ground. Deserts cover about one fifth of the Earth's land surface. Found in North Africa, Saudi Arabia, Australia, southern U.S., and south America.

Mid-latitude climates

• Steppe: The Steppe biome is a dry, cold, grassland that is found in all of the continents except Australia and Antarctica. mostly found in the USA, Mongolia, Siberia, Tibet and China.

• Chaparral: Flat plains, rocky hills and mountain slopes. It is sometimes used in movies for the "Wild West“. Located in Spain, California, and southern Australia.

Mid Latitude climates (continued)• Grasslands: a prairie

consisting of tall grasses, flowers and herbs. The two different types of grasslands are tall-grass, which are humid and very wet, and short-grass, which are dry. Found mostly in the mid-west, Russia, South America, and china.

• Deciduous forests: Deciduous forests can be found in the eastern half of North America, the middle of Europe, and Asia. The average annual temperature in a deciduous forest is 50° F.

High latitude climates• Taiga- the largest biome in the world. It

stretches over Eurasia and North America. The taiga is located near the top of the world, just below the tundra biome. The winters in the taiga are very cold with only snowfall. The summers are warm, rainy, and humid. The taiga has millions of insects in the summertime, and birds migrate here in the winter.

• Tundra- The vast, nearly treeless plains of the artic regions of Europe, Asia, and North America. The ground is permanently frozen so that trees can't grow there. The bare, rocky ground can only support low growing plants like mosses and lichen. In the summer, when the snow and the top layer of permafrost melt, it is very soggy and the tundra is covered with marshes, lakes, bogs and streams that breed thousands of insects and attract many migrating birds.

Climate zone map

WWK: The climate and geographical changes with the advancement of technology.

- Annabel Garcia

How Technology Helps• Over time Geographical

Structures go through many changes. With climate, researchers and technological software has to be more precise.

• Meteorologist are beginning to predict more precise weather forecast because of better radar systems and clearer satellite pictures of the earth. But the comparison of that data and older data meteorologist can also predict future weather conditions.

• Mountains are growing in size by width and height as glaciers are beginning to melt causing ocean levels to rise.

• With the advancement of technology radars as well as the rector scale are becoming more accurate to record tectonic plate shifting. Therefore helping researchers predict future changes in geographical formation

Technology’s Role in Research

• One of the machines used to research ice cores are: Drill outs and Polar Ice Sheets revealing what we know about the history of climate.

• This machine helps researchers compare current-past weather conditions to older researched weather conditions to simulate/predict future weather conditions

• Ice Cores: A drilled out cylinder of ice that shows a vertical timeline of past weather conditions into the present.

Glacial Striations and Fossils• Technology helps

analyze data faster so that more data could be collected before certain glacial structures melt away.

• Global warming is making it harder to get data because the glaciers are melting.

• Fossils hold not only fossil fuels but a carbon dioxide that gives us data about climates from the time the fossil was forming.

• A computer analysis/DNA testing show that the carbon dioxide can help us predict future climate disasters.

• Such as: heat waves, cold fronts, and other natural disaster in that time period that could reoccur today.

glacial striation:One of several, long, straight, parallel lines or grooves in a bedrock surface, formed by boulders, gravel, and pebbles embedded in a glacier that has passed over the surface.

WWK: Climate changes around the world.Salvatore Tortorici

WWK: Climate changes around the world.

• Climate change is pretty self explanatory, it’s the diversity of climates around the world and how they have changed and will continue to change over the earth’s lifetime.

• Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of Weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average (e.g., more or fewer extreme weather events). Climate change may be limited to a specific region or may occur across the whole Earth.

Climate changes continued• Sea level change• Animals• Ice cores• Precipitation• Vegetation• Glaciers• Human influences• Plate tectonics• Volcanism• Solar output• Ocean variability• Orbital variations

• All of theses are things that could affect the climate around the world whether it be the frozen artic or death valley. Where you are on the earth determines what kind of weather and climates you will experience .

• Climate is the composite or generally prevailing weather conditions of a region, as temperature, air pressure, humidity, precipitation, sunshine, cloudiness, and winds, throughout the year, averaged over a series of years.

• Climates are split into six major climatical regions based on the Koppen classification: Alpine, Polar, Continental, Temperate, Dry, Tropical.

• The location on the earths surface also affects everything down to the suns radiation level. It is the greatest at 23 degrees North and 23 degrees South.

References

• www.gisp2.sr.unh.edu/MoreInfo/Ice_Cores_Past.html

• http://www.athropolis.com/arctic-facts/fact-striations.htm

• www.ist-e-next.net/Emerging_technologies_in_Geology.html

• www.nature.org/Change