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| Kabai Péter | Peter Kabai | ||
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1. BIOMS: Major ecosystems on Earth This section is a brief introduction to Physical Geography and Biogeography |
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Physical Geography |
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SUN: Source of energy for Earth Short wave radiation to upper level atmosphere: 2 cal/sq
cm/min |
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Why are tropics hot? Equator: sunlight perpendicular More energy / unit on surface |
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Why are winters cold? Axis is tilted by 23,5 0. Fredrik Venold: What causes the seasonal temperature changes in Oslo
(student
assignment) |
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Generation of precipitation Heat, Evaporation, Air rising, Cooling, Cool air holds
less humidity -> Precipitation |
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Air rises at Equator
Travel to Poles Sink at Poles Travel back to Equator Steady winds from the Poles? Europe: western windsWHY? The Earth is rotating |
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Why are tropics wet? Earth rotates East-West. Air lags behind. Coriolis effect. |
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| Mountains
Air is forced upward by mountain. Air cools. Precipitation.
Dry air descents.
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| More on that: Fundamentals of Physical
Geography, Ch 6, Energy and Matter |
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| Biogeography |
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| Warmth and water: photosynthesis
Figure: satellite image of chlorophyll averaged for 8
years. |
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| Major bioms (dependence on precipitation
and temperature
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http://www.geog.ouc.bc.ca/physgeog/contents/6h.html
Answerers to most of your questions: |
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TUNDRA low precipitation, low temperature, extremely short growing season, low primary production Alpine tundra |
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BOREAL FOREST or TAIGA |
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TEMPERATE BROADLEAF DECIDUOUS FOREST |
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| TROPICAL BROADLEAF EVERGREEN FOREST participation: 200-400 mm Forest floor, understory, canopy, emergent layer
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| TROPICAL GRASSLAND (SAVANNA) precipitation: 75-125 mm, seasonal |
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| DESERT SCRUB precipitation < 25 mm |
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TEMPERATE GRASSLANDS Prairie, pampa, steppe, puszta |
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| MEDITERRANEAN SCRUB |
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Human impact greenhouse gases
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Kjersti Utaaker: The
Greenhouse effect |
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CLIMATE CHANGE |
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2003 summer hottest in 500 years Thousands of deaths were blamed on the heatwave European researchers say last summer was the hottest on the continent for at least five centuries. |
BBC News http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3536819.stm More |
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Less rain in a warmer world? Pollutants
might reduce rainfall, even if more clouds will be generated by global
warming |
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Global warming causing ice-age in Europe?
Picture shows the Great Conveyor belt transporting energy to the North. See original pic and article here. Student essay by Rickard Kohler here |
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"It is theoretically possible
that increases in the flux of fresh water from the Arctic can decrease
the rate of the THC and cause a significant cooling effect in Northern
Europe and Scandinavia and perhaps even trigger an increase in glaciation
over much of the Northern Hemisphere." |
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| More recently (2006): No new ice age for western Europe
:-) the current is not weakening |
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg19225763.900?DCMP=NLC-nletter&nsref=mg19225763.900 |
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K. J. Meissner A R. Gerdes Coupled climate modelling of ocean circulation changes during ice age inception |
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Patrick T. Gallagher Changes in Climate Due to Disruptions of the Gulf Stream Current and Thermohaline Circulation System |
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Atmosphere, Climate & Environment http://www.ace.mmu.ac.uk/Resources/Fact_Sheets/Key_Stage_4/Climate_Change/pdf/Climate_Change.pdf |
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| Ice age: Milankovitch cycles or galopping coroners? (New Scientist) | |||
| A prize of $25 million for anyone who can come up with a system for removing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere NewScientist | |||
| Worst-case warming scenario may bring totally new kinds of tropical climate and cause others to disappear . If global warming continues unabated, many of the world's climate zones may disappear by 2100, leaving new ones in their place unlike any that exist today. | Scientific American | ||
| Glaciers suffer record shrinkage Average glacial shrinkage has risen from 30 centimetres per year between 1980 and 1999, to 1.5 metres in 2006. |
BBC | ||
excellent pdf file on bioms here |
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