Weather and climate are not the same. Weather is what occurs outdoors on a daily basis and is unpredictable from one week to the next, whereas climate follows a stable pattern that is developed over centuries. The planet is divided into climate zones-tropical, temperate and polar-based on temperature differences with distance from the equator where the sun is most intense and temperature affects humidity, precipitation, cloudiness and wind. To understand what drives our climate, scientists study the atmosphere, the oceans, biosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere. 30-Second Climate is an immediately accessible guide to the 50 key factors affecting Earth's climate, past, present and future, each explained in half a minute. From atmospheric circulation to zero carbon, this is the quickest way to know your planet.
By:
Joanna D Haigh
Imprint: Ivy Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions:
Height: 230mm,
Width: 180mm,
ISBN: 9781782405504
ISBN 10: 178240550X
Series: 30-Second
Pages: 160
Publication Date: 06 May 2019
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Foreword Introduction by Joanna HaighChapter 1 Earth's Climate System Glossary 1 Climate components 2 Global circulation of the atmosphere 3 Global circulation of the oceans 4 Climate types (classification) PROFILE Wladimir Koppen 5 Air masses & fronts 6 Climate patternsChapter 2 Heating & Cooling Glossary 7 Earth radiation balance 8 Solar radiation PROFILE John Tyndall 9 Heat radiation & greenhouse effect 10 Effect of clouds & particles 11 Heating rates & temperatures 12 Temperature cycles - diurnal/seasonalChapter 3 Water Glossary 13 Hydrological cycle 14 Water vapour/humidity 15 Clouds & storms 16 Precipitation PROFILE Stepan Makarov 17 Deserts 18 Sea Ice 19 Glaciers & Ice sheetsChapter 4 Life & Biogeochemical Cycles Glossary 20 Biosphere 21 Ecosystems 22 Forests 23 Microclimates 24 Urban climate PROFILE Charles David Keeling 25 Carbon budgetChapter 5 Observations & Modelling Glossary 26 Weather stations 27 Satellites 28 Balloons, aircraft & rockets 29 Climate models PROFILE Syukuro Manabe 30 Data collation 31 Data curation Chapter 6 Changing Climate Glossary 32 Paleoclimate 33 Solar effects 34 Volcanic effects 35 Global warming (greenhouse gases) PROFILE Guy Stewart Callendar 36 Climate forcing factors & radiative forcing 37 Climate sensitivity 38 Extreme events 39 Sea level 40 Ocean acidity 41 Impact on natural systems 42 Impact on human systems Chapter 7 Mitigation Glossary 43 Climate predictions 44 Towards zero carbon (mitigation overview) 45 Energy generation 46 Nuclear energy 47 Transmission & storage of energy 48 Consumption (food, energy) PROFILE IPCC 49 Geoengineering 50 International collaborationResources Notes on Contributors Index Acknowledgements
Joanna D. Haigh CBE FRS is Professor of Atmospheric Physics and co-Director of the Grantham Institute (Climate Change and the Environment) at Imperial College London. She has been fascinated by weather since childhood and has been lucky enough to follow a career in meteorology. Her particular expertise is in how solar and heat radiation interact with the atmosphere and in the physics of climate change.
