Climate has been simply defined as the weather in a particular area, averaged over a long period of time. It includes the temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, rainfall, and the amounts of specific particles in the atmosphere in a given region. Many would agree that not until the development of a primitive atmosphere did Earth truly have a climate. The early release of elements and compounds such as water, ammonia, nitrogen, methane, hydrogen, and carbon dioxide from Earth’s very hot infantile surface created the first atmosphere.
From the moment of the atmosphere’s conception, the atmosphere and climate have been in a constant state of flux. It seems there are infinite geological and biological factors that have influenced the Earth’s climate. To just name a few, meteorites, comets, volcanic eruptions, the appearance of life in the form of anaerobic bacteria, the evolution of bacteria, algae, fungi, plants, and animals.
One interesting example of a geological system affecting Earth’s climate is the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa. Krakatoa, a volcanic island in Indonesia, had a series of eruptions over a two day period that resulted in destroying two-thirds of the island, was heard as far 3,000 miles away, and killed over 36,000 people. This cataclysmic explosion created an atmospheric dust veil that caused the average global temperature to drop as much as 1.2 degrees Celsius for a year after the eruption, and temperatures did not return to normal until five years later. Some scientists have postulated that a volcanic eruption similar to that of Krakatoa, may be responsible for the extreme weather events of 535-536 AD.
Source: en:Image:Krakatoa 01.JPG
A fascinating example of a biological system affecting the Earth’s climate is methane producing microbes in Siberia’s melting permafrost. We learned about the microbes in the Arctic’s upper permafrost layers as possible CO2 contributors in one of our Teachers’ Domain resources, but scientists have also found methane gas to be a result of melting permafrost. The methane producing microbes live in deeper layers beneath lakes or other oxygen lacking areas. Methane gas is a more serious greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide, but has a shorter life.
The most obvious example of culture affecting Earth’s climate is the warming of the Earth’s atmosphere from increased concentrations of greenhouse gases as a result of human activity. Human activities that contribute to Global warming widely range from burning fossil fuels to run their cars and factories to their dependence on methane producing cattle as a food source. One example of a human activity that affects global climate that I had never heard of until researching the topic was airplane contrails that contribute to Earth’s cloudiness. Airplanes that consistently travel the same routes over areas of low temperatures and high humidity create persistent trails of cirrus clouds and therefore disrupt the balance between incoming solar radiation and outgoing infrared radiation.
Teachers’ Domain and NOVA are great for finding resources in topics of interest. They aid in directing research and stimulate students to explore and extend their learning into other related topics. NOVA’s Origins website in particular is extra special. Right on the home page I found a great relevant article to this week’s module titled How Did Life Begin? It is packed with articles and other digital resource that support great teaching. The additional visuals that sites such as Good.is/Good Blog and Information is Beautiful – Climate Change Consensus provide are invaluable. When students hear that not all scientists agree on human induced climate change or that industrialized nations are the major contributors to greenhouse gas emissions, they can really see what that means. It is clear that teachers should regularly use these websites in developing units of study as well as making them available to students to encourage independent exploration.
The most obvious example of culture affecting Earth’s climate is the warming of the Earth’s atmosphere from increased concentrations of greenhouse gases as a result of human activity. Human activities that contribute to Global warming widely range from burning fossil fuels to run their cars and factories to their dependence on methane producing cattle as a food source. One example of a human activity that affects global climate that I had never heard of until researching the topic was airplane contrails that contribute to Earth’s cloudiness. Airplanes that consistently travel the same routes over areas of low temperatures and high humidity create persistent trails of cirrus clouds and therefore disrupt the balance between incoming solar radiation and outgoing infrared radiation.
Teachers’ Domain and NOVA are great for finding resources in topics of interest. They aid in directing research and stimulate students to explore and extend their learning into other related topics. NOVA’s Origins website in particular is extra special. Right on the home page I found a great relevant article to this week’s module titled How Did Life Begin? It is packed with articles and other digital resource that support great teaching. The additional visuals that sites such as Good.is/Good Blog and Information is Beautiful – Climate Change Consensus provide are invaluable. When students hear that not all scientists agree on human induced climate change or that industrialized nations are the major contributors to greenhouse gas emissions, they can really see what that means. It is clear that teachers should regularly use these websites in developing units of study as well as making them available to students to encourage independent exploration.
