[Tornadoes, Thunderstorms & Hurricanes] Thunderstorms thrive…

[Tornadoes, Thunderstorms & Hurricanes] Thunderstorms thrive in unstable atmospheric conditions. Thunderstorms are less likely to form under stable atmospheric conditions. The image below shows the troposphere under stable conditions. Click on the layer of the troposphere that will experience the highest atmospheric density.

[Climate Change] Watch the animation below to explore the pr…

[Climate Change] Watch the animation below to explore the primary causes of sea-level change. Select “Topics” to see the video options. Click here to open the interactive animation in a new window. From the video, you can see that melting ice, plate tectonics, volcanism, and thermal expansion all drive sea-level change. Some of these causes are present regardless of temperature fluctuations. Others are directly affected by increases or decreases in temperature. From the choices below, select the temperature-dependent drivers of sea-level rise.

[Climate Change While we can physically measure the current…

[Climate Change While we can physically measure the current levels of carbon dioxide, to estimate future concentrations, we have to employ computer models. On the graph below, we can see the marked increase in CO2 since the industrial revolution. This includes the observed CO2 concentration for 2018 and two predictive points based on a low-emissions and high-emissions model. If you were creating a model to estimate future CO2 concentrations, which of the following would you consider?

[Climate Change] Let’s look at the CO2 record from a bit fur…

[Climate Change] Let’s look at the CO2 record from a bit further back in time to provide more context. We can see that there are natural cycles in CO2 on a ~100,000 year cycle. These coincide with the glacial/interglacial cycle. On the image, select the parts of the historical record where you would expect glaciations to occur.

[Climate Change] Greenhouse gases are atmospheric gases that…

[Climate Change] Greenhouse gases are atmospheric gases that affect the Earth’s temperature by absorbing infrared radiation. Combustion of fossil fuels increases greenhouse gas emissions. These emissions are one of the primary drivers of the warming trend we have identified in Earth’s climate. From the list of gases below, select the gases that are considered greenhouse gases.