Download or read book Radiative Forcings of Well Mixed Greenhouse Gases written by Brendan Byrne and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A change in the atmospheric inventory of a greenhouse gas produces a radiative forcing on the atmosphere which results in climatic change. Thus to understand climate change resulting from perturbations to atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations it is necessary to quantify the radiative forcing. Here, radiative forcings are presented for large changes in atmospheric CO2, CH4, and N2O in the modern atmosphere and large changes in atmospheric CO2, CH4 and 18 other gases for the Archean atmosphere. For the modern Earth, I present new calculations of radiative forcing at very high concentrations of CO2, CH4, and N2O, relevant to extreme anthropogenic climate change and paleoclimate studies. CO2 forcing is calculated over the range 100 ppmv to 50,000 ppmv. CH4, and N2O forcings are calculated over the range 100 ppbv to 100 ppmv. The sensitivity of these calculations to spatial averaging and tropopause definition are examined. I compare our results with the ``simplified expressions'' reported by IPCC, and find significant differences at high greenhouse gas concentrations. I provide new simplified expressions which agree much better with the calculated forcings, and suggest that these expressions be used in place of the IPCC expressions. Additionally, I provide meridionally resolved forcings which may be used to force simple and intermediate complexity climate models. For the Archean Earth, I present new calculations of radiative forcing for CO2 (10^-6 - 1 bar), CH4 (500 ppbv - 10,000 ppmv) and 18 other gases (10 ppbv - 10 ppmv). I aim to provide a set of radiative forcing and overlap calculations which can be used as a standard for comparisons. Radiative forcings are calculated for atmospheres with various N2 inventories (0.5, 1, and 2 bar). The effect of overlap and atmospheric pressure on radiative forcing are examined. The CO2 radiative forcings are consistent with previous work, however, I find significantly more shortwave absorption by CH4 than previously reported which may limit warming above 100 ppmv. For the 18 other gases, I find that significant radiative forcings result from low concentrations (

Download or read book Radiative Forcing of Climate Change written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2005-03-25 with total page 222 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Changes in climate are driven by natural and human-induced perturbations of the Earth's energy balance. These climate drivers or "forcings" include variations in greenhouse gases, aerosols, land use, and the amount of energy Earth receives from the Sun. Although climate throughout Earth's history has varied from "snowball" conditions with global ice cover to "hothouse" conditions when glaciers all but disappeared, the climate over the past 10,000 years has been remarkably stable and favorable to human civilization. Increasing evidence points to a large human impact on global climate over the past century. The report reviews current knowledge of climate forcings and recommends critical research needed to improve understanding. Whereas emphasis to date has been on how these climate forcings affect global mean temperature, the report finds that regional variation and climate impacts other than temperature deserve increased attention.

Download or read book Radiative Forcing of Climate Change written by and published by . This book was released on 2001 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Chapter 6 of the IPCC Third Assessment Report Climate Change 2001: The Scientific Basis. Sections include: Executive Summary 6.1 Radiative Forcing 6.2 Forcing-Response Relationship 6.3 Well-Mixed Greenhouse Gases 6.4 Stratospheric Ozone 6.5 Radiative Forcing By Tropospheric Ozone 6.6 Indirect Forcings due to Chemistry 6.7 The Direct Radiative Forcing of Tropospheric Aerosols 6.8 The Indirect Radiative Forcing of Tropospheric Aerosols 6.9 Stratospheric Aerosols 6.10 Land-use Change (Surface Albedo Effect) 6.11 Solar Forcing of Climate 6.12 Global Warming Potentials hydrocarbons 6.13 Global Mean Radiative Forcings 6.14 The Geographical Distribution of the Radiative Forcings 6.15 Time Evolution of Radiative Forcings Appendix 6.1 Elements of Radiative Forcing Concept References.

Download or read book Climate Stabilization Targets written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2011-02-11 with total page 298 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Emissions of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels have ushered in a new epoch where human activities will largely determine the evolution of Earth's climate. Because carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is long lived, it can effectively lock the Earth and future generations into a range of impacts, some of which could become very severe. Emissions reductions decisions made today matter in determining impacts experienced not just over the next few decades, but in the coming centuries and millennia. According to Climate Stabilization Targets: Emissions, Concentrations, and Impacts Over Decades to Millennia, important policy decisions can be informed by recent advances in climate science that quantify the relationships between increases in carbon dioxide and global warming, related climate changes, and resulting impacts, such as changes in streamflow, wildfires, crop productivity, extreme hot summers, and sea level rise. One way to inform these choices is to consider the projected climate changes and impacts that would occur if greenhouse gases in the atmosphere were stabilized at a particular concentration level. The book quantifies the outcomes of different stabilization targets for greenhouse gas concentrations using analyses and information drawn from the scientific literature. Although it does not recommend or justify any particular stabilization target, it does provide important scientific insights about the relationships among emissions, greenhouse gas concentrations, temperatures, and impacts. Climate Stabilization Targets emphasizes the importance of 21st century choices regarding long-term climate stabilization. It is a useful resource for scientists, educators and policy makers, among others.

Download or read book Climate Change Science written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2001-06-28 with total page 41 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The warming of the Earth has been the subject of intense debate and concern for many scientists, policy-makers, and citizens for at least the past decade. Climate Change Science: An Analysis of Some Key Questions, a new report by a committee of the National Research Council, characterizes the global warming trend over the last 100 years, and examines what may be in store for the 21st century and the extent to which warming may be attributable to human activity.

Download or read book A Plan for a Research Program on Aerosol Radiative Forcing and Climate Change written by Panel on Aerosol Radiative Forcing and Climate Change and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1996-05-01 with total page 180 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book recommends the initiation of an "integrated" research program to study the role of aerosols in the predicted global climate change. Current understanding suggest that, even now, aerosols, primarily from anthropogenic sources, may be reducing the rate of warming caused by greenhouse gas emissions. In addition to specific research recommendations, this book forcefully argues for two kinds of research program integration: integration of the individual laboratory, field, and theoretical research activities and an integrated management structure that involves all of the concerned federal agencies.

Download or read book Verifying Greenhouse Gas Emissions written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2010-07-28 with total page 124 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The world's nations are moving toward agreements that will bind us together in an effort to limit future greenhouse gas emissions. With such agreements will come the need for all nations to make accurate estimates of greenhouse gas emissions and to monitor changes over time. In this context, the present book focuses on the greenhouse gases that result from human activities, have long lifetimes in the atmosphere and thus will change global climate for decades to millennia or more, and are currently included in international agreements. The book devotes considerably more space to CO2 than to the other gases because CO2 is the largest single contributor to global climate change and is thus the focus of many mitigation efforts. Only data in the public domain were considered because public access and transparency are necessary to build trust in a climate treaty. The book concludes that each country could estimate fossil-fuel CO2 emissions accurately enough to support monitoring of a climate treaty. However, current methods are not sufficiently accurate to check these self-reported estimates against independent data or to estimate other greenhouse gas emissions. Strategic investments would, within 5 years, improve reporting of emissions by countries and yield a useful capability for independent verification of greenhouse gas emissions reported by countries.

Download or read book Climate Change 2007 written by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Working Group 2 and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 93 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Climate Projections Based on Emissions Scenarios for Long Lived and Short Lived Radiatively Active Gases and Aerosols written by Hiram Levy II and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on 2009-02 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Synthesis and Assessment Product (SAP) is part of a series of 21 SAPs produced by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) aimed at providing current assessments of climate change science to inform public debate, policy, and operational decisions. These reports are also intended to help the CCSP develop future program research priorities. Contents: Climate Projects from Well-Mixed Greenhouse Gas Stabilization Emission Scenarios; Climate Change from Short-Lived Emissions Due to Human Activities; Findings, Issues, Opportunities, and Recommendations. Appendices: IPCC Fourth Assessment Report Climate Projections; MAGICC Model Description; Composition Models; Climate Models; Scenarios. Illustrations.

Download or read book Global Warming written by Bharat Raj Singh and published by BoD – Books on Demand. This book was released on 2015-04-22 with total page 222 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Global warming has become perhaps the most complicated issue facing world leaders. It is becoming clear that humans have caused most of the past century's warming by releasing heat-trapping gases as we power our modern lives mainly by the burning of fossil fuels and forests. Whatever the uncertainties of climate models are, mankind has to strive very fast toward reduction in the huge amount of greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere in order to preserve natural resources and living organisms by introducing new advances on alternative fuels and other related technologies. This book presents the state-of-the-science fundamentals on the origin of Global Warming. The aim of the book is to create awareness among the energy engineers, academicians, researchers, industry personnel and society as a whole to help to stop the impact of climate change. In this book, chapters received from various authors are placed in three sub- sections - Causes of Global Warming, Impacts / Threats / Consequences of Global Warming and Remedies to the Global Warming.

Download or read book Policy Implications of Greenhouse Warming written by National Academy of Engineering and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1992-02-01 with total page 945 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Global warming continues to gain importance on the international agenda and calls for action are heightening. Yet, there is still controversy over what must be done and what is needed to proceed. Policy Implications of Greenhouse Warming describes the information necessary to make decisions about global warming resulting from atmospheric releases of radiatively active trace gases. The conclusions and recommendations include some unexpected results. The distinguished authoring committee provides specific advice for U.S. policy and addresses the need for an international response to potential greenhouse warming. It offers a realistic view of gaps in the scientific understanding of greenhouse warming and how much effort and expense might be required to produce definitive answers. The book presents methods for assessing options to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, offset emissions, and assist humans and unmanaged systems of plants and animals to adjust to the consequences of global warming.

Download or read book Principles of Planetary Climate written by Raymond T. Pierrehumbert and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2010-12-02 with total page 679 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book introduces the reader to all the basic physical building blocks of climate needed to understand the present and past climate of Earth, the climates of Solar System planets, and the climates of extrasolar planets. These building blocks include thermodynamics, infrared radiative transfer, scattering, surface heat transfer and various processes governing the evolution of atmospheric composition. Nearly four hundred problems are supplied to help consolidate the reader's understanding, and to lead the reader towards original research on planetary climate. This textbook is invaluable for advanced undergraduate or beginning graduate students in atmospheric science, Earth and planetary science, astrobiology, and physics. It also provides a superb reference text for researchers in these subjects, and is very suitable for academic researchers trained in physics or chemistry who wish to rapidly gain enough background to participate in the excitement of the new research opportunities opening in planetary climate.

Download or read book Mineral Dust written by Peter Knippertz and published by Springer. This book was released on 2014-09-01 with total page 526 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume presents state-of-the-art research about mineral dust, including results from field campaigns, satellite observations, laboratory studies, computer modelling and theoretical studies. Dust research is a new, dynamic and fast-growing area of science and due to its multiple roles in the Earth system, dust has become a fascinating topic for many scientific disciplines. Aspects of dust research covered in this book reach from timescales of minutes (as with dust devils, cloud processes and radiation) to millennia (as with loess formation and oceanic sediments), making dust both a player and recorder of environmental change. The book is structured in four main parts that explore characteristics of dust, the global dust cycle, impacts of dust on the Earth system, and dust as a climate indicator. The chapters in these parts provide a comprehensive, detailed overview of this highly interdisciplinary subject. The contributions presented here cover dust from source to sink and describe all the processes dust particles undergo while travelling through the atmosphere. Chapters explore how dust is lifted and transported, how it affects radiation, clouds, regional circulations, precipitation and chemical processes in the atmosphere and how it deteriorates air quality. The book explores how dust is removed from the atmosphere by gravitational settling, turbulence or precipitation, how iron contained in dust fertilizes terrestrial and marine ecosystems, and about the role that dust plays in human health. We learn how dust is observed, simulated using computer models and forecast. The book also details the role of dust deposits for climate reconstructions. Scientific observations and results are presented, along with numerous illustrations. This work has an interdisciplinary appeal and will engage scholars in geology, geography, chemistry, meteorology and physics, amongst others with an interest in the Earth system and environmental change. body>

Download or read book Climate System Modeling written by Kevin E. Trenberth and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1992 with total page 822 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Climate Systems Modeling presents an interdisciplinary and comprehensive study of the dynamics of the whole global system. As a comprehensive text it will appeal to students and researchers concerned with any aspect of climatology and the study of related topics in the broad earth and environmental sciences.

Download or read book Introduction to Atmospheric Chemistry written by Daniel J. Jacob and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 1999 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Atmospheric chemistry is one of the fastest growing fields in the earth sciences. Until now, however, there has been no book designed to help students capture the essence of the subject in a brief course of study. Daniel Jacob, a leading researcher and teacher in the field, addresses that problem by presenting the first textbook on atmospheric chemistry for a one-semester course. Based on the approach he developed in his class at Harvard, Jacob introduces students in clear and concise chapters to the fundamentals as well as the latest ideas and findings in the field. Jacob's aim is to show students how to use basic principles of physics and chemistry to describe a complex system such as the atmosphere. He also seeks to give students an overview of the current state of research and the work that led to this point. Jacob begins with atmospheric structure, design of simple models, atmospheric transport, and the continuity equation, and continues with geochemical cycles, the greenhouse effect, aerosols, stratospheric ozone, the oxidizing power of the atmosphere, smog, and acid rain. Each chapter concludes with a problem set based on recent scientific literature. This is a novel approach to problem-set writing, and one that successfully introduces students to the prevailing issues. This is a major contribution to a growing area of study and will be welcomed enthusiastically by students and teachers alike.

Download or read book Climate Intervention written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2015-06-23 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The growing problem of changing environmental conditions caused by climate destabilization is well recognized as one of the defining issues of our time. The root problem is greenhouse gas emissions, and the fundamental solution is curbing those emissions. Climate geoengineering has often been considered to be a "last-ditch" response to climate change, to be used only if climate change damage should produce extreme hardship. Although the likelihood of eventually needing to resort to these efforts grows with every year of inaction on emissions control, there is a lack of information on these ways of potentially intervening in the climate system. As one of a two-book report, this volume of Climate Intervention discusses albedo modification - changing the fraction of incoming solar radiation that reaches the surface. This approach would deliberately modify the energy budget of Earth to produce a cooling designed to compensate for some of the effects of warming associated with greenhouse gas increases. The prospect of large-scale albedo modification raises political and governance issues at national and global levels, as well as ethical concerns. Climate Intervention: Reflecting Sunlight to Cool Earth discusses some of the social, political, and legal issues surrounding these proposed techniques. It is far easier to modify Earth's albedo than to determine whether it should be done or what the consequences might be of such an action. One serious concern is that such an action could be unilaterally undertaken by a small nation or smaller entity for its own benefit without international sanction and regardless of international consequences. Transparency in discussing this subject is critical. In the spirit of that transparency, Climate Intervention: Reflecting Sunlight to Cool Earth was based on peer-reviewed literature and the judgments of the authoring committee; no new research was done as part of this study and all data and information used are from entirely open sources. By helping to bring light to this topic area, this book will help leaders to be far more knowledgeable about the consequences of albedo modification approaches before they face a decision whether or not to use them.

Download or read book Advancing the Science of Climate Change written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2011-01-10 with total page 526 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Climate change is occurring, is caused largely by human activities, and poses significant risks for-and in many cases is already affecting-a broad range of human and natural systems. The compelling case for these conclusions is provided in Advancing the Science of Climate Change, part of a congressionally requested suite of studies known as America's Climate Choices. While noting that there is always more to learn and that the scientific process is never closed, the book shows that hypotheses about climate change are supported by multiple lines of evidence and have stood firm in the face of serious debate and careful evaluation of alternative explanations. As decision makers respond to these risks, the nation's scientific enterprise can contribute through research that improves understanding of the causes and consequences of climate change and also is useful to decision makers at the local, regional, national, and international levels. The book identifies decisions being made in 12 sectors, ranging from agriculture to transportation, to identify decisions being made in response to climate change. Advancing the Science of Climate Change calls for a single federal entity or program to coordinate a national, multidisciplinary research effort aimed at improving both understanding and responses to climate change. Seven cross-cutting research themes are identified to support this scientific enterprise. In addition, leaders of federal climate research should redouble efforts to deploy a comprehensive climate observing system, improve climate models and other analytical tools, invest in human capital, and improve linkages between research and decisions by forming partnerships with action-oriented programs.