Climate Change (scientific)
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NOTE TO WIKIPEDIA EDITORS: I HAVE CREATED THIS DRAFT AS A GUIDELINE FOR UPDATING THE TOPIC OF "CLIMATE CHANGE" SUCH THAT THE PAGE ON GLOBAL WARMING WILL BE LINKED FROM A BROADER DEFINITION OF THE FULL TOPIC OF CLIMATE CHANGE. I HAVE NOT YET INCLUDED THE CITATIONS BUT I HAVE MANY RELIABLE SOURCES. ALSO I AM VERY OPEN TO IMPROVEMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS.
Climate is defined as the typical weather pattern for an area, and is usually taken as an average over 30 years although a longer multi-decadal period may be selected. Additionally, the statistical description of key weather components, in terms of their means and standard deviations, defines the climate of the region specified over the time period specified.[1] Climate has not remained the same across thousands of years, so a multi-decadal period describes the current climate features of a region as opposed to the climate history.
Climate change is therefore defined as an identifiable change in the mean or variability of a weather component, identifiable such as by statistical tests. [1]
Climate Change versus Global Warming[edit]
Climate change in simple terms is a long-term change in the climate of the Earth or a region on Earth.[2] Climate change encompasses all types of changes, from warming to cooling, droughts to floods, storms to stillness, or changes in cloud cover or sea level over a term considered long enough to establish the regional norm. While "global warming" and "climate change" are often used interchangeably, global warming is in fact a subtopic of the broader topic of climate change.
Global warming is the increase in Earth’s average surface temperature, relative to a baseline reference period, across a sufficiently long period as to eliminate short-term variations. [1] [2] Global warming is sometimes defined so as to be attributed to solely greenhouse gas emissions. [2] Note there are other ways in which warming takes place besides by emissions, and other ways in which greenhouse gas emissions occur aside from industrial or vehicle pollution, aside from human activities.
Types of Climate Change[edit]
Climate change is categorized into two distinct types termed anthropogenic, referring to climate change induced by human activities, and natural, referring to changes that would occur to climate absent human presence. There may also be interactions between these types, for instance, there are ways in which extremes of natural climate change may be exacerbated by anthropogenic contributors. Global warming also has both anthropogenic and natural causes, and some greenhouse gasses are natural. In fact, greenhouse gases maintain a temperature on the earth's surface warm enough for living things to survive. Without greenhouse gases, the earth's average surface temperature would fall from around 57 degrees to 0 degrees Fahrenheit.
Another distinction in climate change is whether change is variable, such that conditions return to some neutral state, or else cycle to a different extreme, as compared to a continued trending change.
Climate change can further refer to overall global effects on average or to regional effects; the same meteorological phenomena will not have the same impact on all regions of the planet. A change may be confined to a single region or to a small number of regions.
Natural Climate Change[edit]
An example cause of natural climate change is a volcano eruption, which releases gasses into the atmosphere along with particulate matter. Temperatures may be lower following eruption due to sunlight obstruction from ash in the environment. The greenhouse gas emissions will eventually have the greater contribution to warming.
The El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is a natural phenomenon that takes place across the Pacific Ocean and influences climate in certain regions around the planet in varied manners.
Wildfires can be naturally occurring when caused by intense sunlight or lightning strike, leaving an area dryer.
Anthropogenic Climate Change[edit]
The most familiar form of anthropogenic climate change is global warming from the greenhouse gas emissions of polluting factories and vehicles.
Deforestation is also a cause of climate change. Other land use changes can lead to climate change, although deforestation is the leading land use change which is known to affect climate.
Installation of impermeable black asphalt pavement interferes with the water cycle and results in a change to albedo, the surface reflectivity, particularly if the area was formerly forested or rich in vegetation. Cities constructed of buildings and asphalt roads can generate an isolated area of warming known as the Urban Heat Island Effect.
Variable Climate Change[edit]
The El Nino Southern Oscillation is a natural phenomenon which gives rise to variable climate change. There are three distinct phases of the El Nino Southern Oscillation, known as Neutral, El Nino, or La Nina. During El Nino phases, the west coast of the United States may be bombarded with strong El Nino winter storms, while during La Nina phases, the East Coast of the United States may experience heightened hurricane activity.
Changes in the sun's luminosity is another factor of nature that will cause climate to change.
A volcanic winter, which may occurs following an eruption, is a variable change since cooling is temporary until ash settles or transported by winds.
Definitions VENN Diagram[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ Matthews, J.B. "Annex VII. Glossary: IPCC - Interfovernmental Panel on Climate Change". IPCC. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
- ↑ Conway, Eric M. "What's In a Name? Climate Change vs. Global Warming". www.NASA.gov. NASA. Retrieved August 9, 2010.
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