The destruction of the ozone layer primarily occurs in the
- mesosphere.
- thermosphere.
- stratosphere.
- troposphere.
- lithosphere.
The jet streams in the United States generally flow from west to east because of
- ocean currents off the Pacific and Atlantic coastlines.
- convection currents between the troposphere and stratosphere.
- rotation of the earth.
- high pressure systems generated by the sun striking the North American continent.
- the moons gravitational pull.
Which of the following activities have contributed the greatest amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere over the past 100 years?
- Increased farming and production of grains
- Increased reliance upon coal, oil, and natural gas
- Deforestation of rain forests and other parts of the world
- Volcanic eruptions
- Widespread forest fires
Which of the following illustrates a risk assessment of climate system change?
- Using natural gas instead of coal to generate electricity
- Using solar and nuclear power to generate electricity instead of burning coal
- Measuring the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
- Determining what sorts of crops will be better suited to the new climate
- Determining the best location for a new coal power plant
Global warming will raise sea levels because of
- melting ice and thermal expansion.
- compressed ocean basins by continental drift.
- increased precipitation over the oceans.
- increased use of irrigation on land.
- volcanic activity.
The most dramatic temperature shifts in the past few decades have been
on land near the equator.
- in the oceans nearest the equator.
- in the north and south polar regions.
- in the innermost regions of the North American and African continents.
- in the prairies of North America and the savannahs of Africa.
The best computer models of global climate change indicate that in the next 50 years,
all of the rain forests will be destroyed.
- growing seasons will get shorter.
- the world will warm up by 2-3 °C.
- regions of drought will instead experience flooding.
- the world will cool by 2-3 °C.
If the world cooperated and stabilized the atmospheric levels of GHGs,
global temperatures would quickly level off within a year.
- sea levels would continue to rise for hundreds of years.
- rain forests would quickly start to recover and regrow.
- weather would quickly become predictable.
- coral reefs will recover.
Climatologists warn of a tipping point when global temperatures trigger catastrophic events and sea levels rise of close to 2 meters. What would cause the sea level to rise so greatly?
Increased precipitation over the continents
- Melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet
- Thermal expansion of the oceans
- Melting of the polar ice cap
- Increased precipitation over the oceans
From 1990 to 2006, what region of the world was able to reduce its GHGs?
United States
- European Union
- Australia
- Canada
- Africa