Global Warming Response

Homework 1_Ice Ages & Climate Dynamics

Julia Kahmann-Robinson PhD and Marjorie Chan PhD, University of Utah Department of Geology & Geophysics

Purpose

Distinguish between varying climate drivers on Earth and formulate an informed opinion regarding Global Warming.

Milankovitch Cycles

Watch the following YouTube video explaining Milankovitch Cycles and answer the following questions: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWJyeyV92W4

  1. What are the (3) different cycles and what drives them?
  2. At what scale or duration do these cycles operate?
  3. What is Earth's axial tilt today (you will need to do some outside research for this)

Goddard Space Flight Center

Watch the following YouTube video from Goddard Space Flight center regarding NASA climate research and answer the following questions: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROZJmX73FF4

  1. When temperatures change from year to year, how many degrees is it on average? Does this seem significant to you, why or why not?
  2. NASA uses (3) main sources to obtain climate data, list them below. Is the data publically available?
  3. The video cites at least (3) other contributing sources to the warming of climate. List them below.

The Role of Sunspots

Read the following article from NASA's Earth Observatory and answer the associated questions: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Features/SORCE/sorce_03.php

  1. What are sunspots?
  2. If sunspots are actually cooler, then why is the overall energy output facing Earth greater with increased sunspot activity?
  3. According to the article, what might be the cause of the Little Ice Age from 1650-1715 AD?

Formulate Your Opinion

In a 1-2 page double-spaced paper include the following:

  • State your opinion on global warming
  • Define global warming
  • State at least 3 pieces of evidence to support your opinion (you may need to do outside research, you may not use Wikipedia)
  • Use in-text citations to cite your evidence