Final Exam Coverage

• • Earth rotates every 24hours.

  • Counterclockwise direction from west to east

  • As a consequence, it seems that the sun rises the east and sets onthe west

  Rotation
• • It revolves around a elliptical orbit

  • One revolution equal to 1year.

  • Perihelion – Earth closest to the sun.(Earth moves faster)

  • Aphelion –______ a way from the sun.(Earth moves slower)


  Revolution
• • The axis of the Earth is tilted with respect to the vertical angle of 23.5degrees.

  • Different places receive different amount of insolation (incoming solar radiation)

  • Length of daytime and night time depending on the place and the time of the year.

  • These factors determine the occurrences of seasons.

  Insolation
• • When the tilt of the axis id directed towards the sun (June21/22) , the northern hemisphere receives more direct sunlight. In particular, the sun is directly overhead at noontime over the Tropic of Cancer.

  • Except for those places in equator, l. – Solstice.

  • In the northern hemisphere, the length of daytime is longer than nighttime. – Summer solstice in the North Hemisphere, Winter Solstice in the South hemisphere

  Solstice
• • When the tilt of the axis is away from the sun (December21/22) , the southern hemisphere receives more directsunlight. In particular, the sun is directly overhead at noontime over the Tropic of Capricorn.

  • Except for those places in equator, the length of daytime nighttime are not equal. – Solstice.

  • In the northern hemisphere– Winter Solstice, Summer solstice in the South Hemisphere, thus the South has longer daytime than night time.

  Solstice
• • When the tilt of the axis of the earth is neither towards Norway from the sun (March 21/22 and September 22/23), the Northern and southern hemispheres receive the same amount of insolation.

  • As a consequence, this phenomenon is known as equinox. On March 21/22 it is spring equinox in the northern hemisphere and autumnal equinox in the southern hemisphere.

  • On September 22/23, it is autumnal equinox in the northern hemisphere and spring equinox in the southern hemisphere.

  Equinox
• The phenomenon of windward and leeward sides of a mountain is largely due to thebehavior of air masses as they encounter topographical features like mountains.

  Mountain Topography
• As mentioned earlier, air pressure decreases with altitude. When airpressure drops, the air molecules have more space to move around,and this expansion causes a drop in temperature. It's similar to whenyou release the pressure on a compressed gas canister, and it coolsdown.

  Decrease in Atmospheric Pressure
• When air rises in the atmosphere, it expands because the pressurearound it decreases. This expansion causes the air molecules to movefarther apart, leading to a decrease in temperature. This process iscalled adiabatic cooling. It's the same principle behind why the airfeels cooler when you release it from a can of compressed air.

  Adiabatic Cooling
• At higher altitudes, there's less air above to trap heat from theSun. As a result, the ground and the air around you lose heatmore quickly through radiation. This radiative cooling contributesto the overall decrease in temperature as you ascend.

  Radiative Cooling
• As moist air rises and cools at higher altitudes, it may reach itsdew point, causing water vapor to condense into clouds andprecipitation. This process releases latent heat, which furthercools the surrounding air.

  Latent Heat Release
• Sources: Burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas) for energy, deforestation,industrial processes (e.g., cement production), and certain natural processes likevolcanic eruptions and respiration.

  Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
• Sources: Agricultural activities (e.g., livestock digestion and rice cultivation), naturalgas production and distribution, landfills, biomass burning, and certain industrialprocesses.

  Methane (CH4)
• Sources: Agricultural activities (e.g., use of synthetic fertilizers and manure), fossilfuel combustion, industrial processes, and certain natural processes like microbialprocesses in soils and oceans.

  Nitrous Oxide (N2O)
• Water vapour is the most abundant greenhouse gas, but its concentration in the atmospheres primarily influenced by temperature rather than direct human activities. However, human activities can indirectly influence water vapor levels through activities that affect temperature and atmospheric circulation, such as deforestation and urbanization.


  Water Vapour (H2O)
• Sources: Historically used in refrigeration, air conditioning, foam blowing agents, solvents,and aerosol propellants. While their production has been largely phased out due to their role in ozone depletion, CFCs are potent greenhouse gases with a high global warming potential.

  Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
• Sources: Used as replacements for CFCs in refrigeration, air conditioning, and foam blowingagents. HFCs were introduced as alternatives to CFCs due to their lower ozone depletionpotential, but they have a high global warming potential.

  Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)
• Sources: Used in various industrial processes, including aluminum production, semiconductormanufacturing, and the production of magnesium and other metals. PFCs have extremelyhigh global warming potentials.

  Perfluorocarbons (PFCs)
• Respiratory Problems: Inhalation of air pollutants such as particulate matter (PM), nitrogen dioxide(NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and ozone (O3) can lead to respiratory issues like asthma, bronchitis, and exacerbation of existing respiratory conditions.

  Health Effects
• Climate Change: Greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide(N2O) contribute to global warming and climate change, leading to rising temperatures, melting icecaps, altered precipitation patterns, and more frequent extreme weather events.

  Environmental Effects
• Healthcare Costs: Air pollution-related illnesses impose substantial economic burdens on healthcare systems, governments, and individuals due to medical expenses, hospitalizations, and loss of productivity.

  Economic Effects
• Disproportionate Burden: Vulnerable populations, including children, the elderly, low-income communities, and marginalized groups, often bear a disproportionate burden of air pollution related health impacts and environmental injustices.

  Social Impacts
• Weather refers to the conditions in the atmosphere over short time scales (e.g. Minutes, hours, days even weeks).
• Climate is the averaged weather over a long period of time (e.g. years +++ )over a certain place. (Avg. weather of at least 30 years)
• Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. Such shifts can be natural, due to changes in the sun’s activity or large volcanic eruptions. But since the 1800s,human activities have been the main driver of climate change, primarily due to the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas.
• Paleolithic Era (Old Stone Age) 1. Hunter-gatherer lifestyle 2. Use of stone tools and weapons
• Mesolithic Era (Middle Stone Age) 1. Development of more refined tools 2. Early forms of social organization
• Neolithic Era (New Stone Age) 1. Transition to agriculture and domestication of animals 2. Settlements and the rise of early civilizations
• Age of the Earth 4.54 billion years old
• Industrial Age, also known as the Industrial Revolution, marks a period of significant economic, technological, and social transformation that began in the late 18th century in Britain and later spread to other parts of the world.
• Carbon dioxide (CO2) CO2 is released through natural processes, such as volcanic eruptions, plant respiration and animals and humans breathing
• Methane is produced naturally through decomposition. But again, human activity has displaced the natural balance.
• Nitrous oxide is produced through the large-scale use of commercial and organic fertilisers, fossil-fuel combustion, nitric-acid production and biomass burning
• Water vapour is the most abundant greenhouse gas. It increases as the earth's atmosphere warms but unlike CO2, which can remain in the earth’s atmosphere for centuries, water vapour persists for only a few days.
• Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are nontoxic, nonflammable chemicals containing atoms of carbon, chlorine, and fluorine.
• These scenarios are made possible because of the mismanagement of the natural environment is affected by the economy and how the concept of sustainability offers a resolution for human kind, as well as our planet.
• Because the environmental problems we face today are anthropogenic, we also delve into the history of environmentalism.
• it is essential to consider the three unifying themes of environmental science sustainability, sound science, and stewardship.
• The goods and services derived from the environment create the products and commodities mobilized in the social infrastructure we refer to as economics.
• Green economy - is a tool for achieving sustainable development. An economy focused on the reduction of environmental risks and ecological scarcities by using energy more efficiently and managing natural resources more responsibly.