1. ClimateLong term weather patterns www.blueplanetbiomes.org

2. Factors Affecting Climate • Altitude • Latitude • Currents www.cappadocia.travel www.mrdowling.com go-passport.grolier.com

3. news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/science/nature/5348692.stm Altitude • How far above sea level you are • The farther up, the cooler the climate is. • With climate change, people are moving farther up mountains to avoid mosquitoes.How does this impact other organisms?

4. schools-wikipedia.org/wp/e/Effect_of_sun_angl... Latitude • How far north or south of the equator you are. • Equator receives direct sun rays. • The farther from the equator the greater the angle of incidence of light, thus the cooler the climate

5. Currents • Wind Currents • Ocean Currents

6. Wind Currents • Air moving across the warm waters of the North Atlantic moderate the Climate of Northern America and Western Europe

7. Wind Currents • The Jet Stream moves south of us during the winter, pulling cold Artic air from the NW into Michigan. • Fast moving systems from the Canadian Rockies are called Clippers. www.jeffsweather.com www.accuweather.com

8. www.fas.org/.../docs/rst/Sect14/Sect14_1c.html Wind Currents • During the summer, the Jet Stream moves to the north of Michigan. • Air from the Gulf of Mexico travels from the SW to bring moisture and warmth to Michigan

9. Wind Currents http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nor'easter http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade_wind http://kids.earth.nasa.gov/archive/nino/global.html www.answers.com

10. thedifferencemagazine.blogspot.com/2007/08/no... Ocean Currents • The North Atlantic Current is the “Conveyer Belt” that moderates our climate • Warm less dense water from the Equator travels on the surface to the north • Winds moving across the N. Atlantic pick up the heat and transfer it to W. Europe and N. America

11. nsidc.org/.../factors/land_sea_distribution.html Ocean Currents • Glacial melt at the poles creates cold dense water that sinks and travels to the equator. This drives the warm less dense water to the surface and pushes it northward

12. Ocean Currents • What is the future of the N. Atlantic Current if there is no glacial melt? • What becomes of the Climate in the Northern Hemisphere?

13. 1.6 mya Eocene 65 mya 100 mya 200 mya 300 mya Earths Climatic History • Earth’s Climate is like a pendulum. It naturally swings between extreme heat and cold over long periods of time.

14. Earths Climatic History img62.imageshack.us

15. Ice Cores Indicate varying levels of CO2 in the atmosphere. Sediment Cores During periods of elevated CO2 in the atmosphere sediment cores indicate a warm climate Evidences of Climate Change www.nsf.gov

16. Effects of Climate Change on Temperature and Precipitation www.adaptation.rncan.gc.ca

17. Effects of Climate Change on Biodiversity • Genetic Adaptations require long periods of time to evolve. • Rapid climatic changes cause significant changes in food webs and mass extinctions

18. www.theresilientearth.com/?q=content/meteor-s... Cataclysmic Events causing Climate Change • Supervolcano Eruptions • “Snowball Earth” effect causing mass extinctions ~95-99% • Asteroid strikes caused a ~80% extinction. www.solcomhouse.com/yellowstone.htm http://atropos.as.arizona.edu/aiz/teaching/a204/images/snowball_earth.gif

19. www.treehugger.com/2008/02/24-week/ Effects of Global Warming www.pm.gov.au www.greendiary.com flatplanet.wikispaces.com www.aboundlessworld.com www.cosmosmagazine.com

20. eospso.gsfc.nasa.gov/eos_observ/9_10_95/p07.html Effects of Global Warming

21. Climate change can involve abrupt flips. The most likely cause is a disruption in the N. Atlantic current. These have been natural occurring events over Earth’s history.

22. Greenhouse Earth Effect • CO2 is rising faster than at any period in recent history. • Will man cause the next climate change before its time? • If so what is the effect on Michigan? www.webwombat.com.au