Introduction to Climate Change Global Warming or Climate

Introduction to Climate Change

Global Warming or Climate Change? n The terms global warming and climate change are often used interchangeably. What’s the difference? Scientists’ initial focus on the changing climate was the persistent temperature rise over several decades: hence “warming” was the feature that received major attention. The more comprehensive term “climate change” is more common now; it includes the global warming trend, but also refers to other climate change linked phenomena such as severe weather, melting polar ice caps, and high winds.

Weather n n n Describes conditions outside on a particular day (temp. , precip. , etc. ) Studied by meteorologists Very short term

Weather n Weather terms to know: n n n Temperature Precipitation (type and amount) Wind speed Relative humidity (amount of water vapour in air compared to max. amount of water possible for air to hold at that temp. ) Atmospheric pressure Fog, mist or cloud type and cover

Weather n n n Agency responsible is Environment Canada Gather data used by meteorologists Weather stations, weather balloons, aircraft, satellites

Satellite Weather http: //www. weatheroffice. gc. ca/radar/index_e. html? id=WKR

Climate n n n Usual pattern of weather in an area over a long period of time (> 30 years) Use average results “Climate is what you expect, weather is what you get” n Robert Heinlein

Climate n n Determines types of flora (plants) and fauna (animals) a region has Flora and fauna adapt to survive in certain climates

Climate Zones n n Vladimir Koppen Early 1900’s Used temp. , precip. and plants to identify zones Had very crooked beard

Ecoregions n n Updated Koppen’s method Focus on ecology of region Added landforms, soil and animals Over 20 in Canada alone

Factors Affecting Climate n n n Distance from the Equator (latitude) Large bodies of water Ocean or air currents Land formations Height above sea level (altitude or elevation)

Bioclimate Profile n http: //www. cics. uvic. ca/scenarios/bcp/select. cgi