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Chapter 5: Global Climate Change

Sections in this Chapter

Chapter Challenge

In this section you will find materials that support the implementation of EarthComm, Chapter 5: Chapter Challenge.

Article 1: How Has Global Climate Changed Over Time?

The Meaning of Climate

Climate, National Geographic Education
Looks at how the world’s climates can be divided into categories.

Examples of Past Climates

What is a Glacier?, National Snow and Ice Data Center
Provides information on glacial formation, movement, and associated landforms.

Investigating Climate Change of Western North America, USGS
Learn more about climate change and the study of the geological record for Western North America.

How Geologists Find Out about Past Climates

North American Drought: A Paleo Perspective, SERC Carlton University, EarthLabs
Explores paleoclimatic data and how it can provide information about past droughts.

Paleoclimates and Pollen, UCAR
Information on the background, trends, and evidence of paleoclimates.

Biological Proxies - Spores and Pollen, USGS
Learn how these microscopic structures for plant reproduction can yield records of vegetation and community changes over time.

Why Study Ice Cores?, National Ice Core Laboratory (NSF ICF)
Includes a brief description about why ice cores are an important source of information.

Sea Sediments, Enviropedia
Learn more about sediments found on the sea floor and information that can be revealed by investigating these sediments.

About Tree Rings, University of Arizona
Overview of the dating and study of annual rings in trees, including what they tell us.

Article 2: Causes of Global Climate Change

Milankovitch Cycles

Paleoclimatology: Explaining the Evidence, NASA
Examines the connection between eccentricity, axial tilt, and precession in relation to past glaciations.

Milankovitch Cycles and their role in Earth’s climate, NASA
Explains the role that the three different aspects of Milankovitch Cycles play in the seasons.

Plate Tectonics

Plate Tectonics and Climate Change, Thompson Rivers University
Looks at how plate tectonics affects important processes like the formation of mountains and the direction of ocean currents.

Climate Change - Plate Tectonics, Lyndon State College
Looks at how plate tectonics affect climate change.

Ocean Currents

How the Oceans Influence Climate, The Global Development Research Center
Looks at the influence of ocean circulation on climate.

Ocean Currents and Climate, National Geographic Education
Learn more about the different oceanic currents and the role those currents play on climate change.

Carbon Dioxide and Other Greenhouse Gases

Sources of Greenhouse Gases, EPA
An overview of data graphics that show the sectors contributing to atmospheric greenhouse gases.

U.S. Greenhouse Gas Inventory, EPA
View US emission data on greenhouse gases from 1990 through 2016.

Article 3: What is Global Climate Change and How Might It Affect Our Community?

Greenhouse Gases

Global Climate Change FAQ, NASA
Provides descriptions of global warming and greenhouse gasses. Also contains several helpful links to other sites on greenhouse gasses.

Humans and Carbon Dioxide in the Atmosphere

Climate FAQ, NASA Earth Observatory
Provides descriptions of global warming and greenhouse gasses. Also contains several helpful links to other sites on greenhouse gasses.

Emissions of Greenhouse Gases Report, U.S. Energy Information Administration
Provides information on carbon dioxide emissions from US energy and industry.

Responding to Climate Change, NASA
Provides information on mitigating and adapting to our changing climate.

Fourth National Climate Assessment, U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP)
Examines initiatives to research and abate global warming.

Carbon Dioxide and Global Warming

Understanding the Global Carbon Cycle, Woodwell Climate Research Center
Reviews the basics of the global carbon cycle and how fossil fuels are linked to the cycle.

Climate Change and the Future

Future Climate Change, US Global Change Research Program
Describes projection of future climate based on the amount of heat trapping gases in the atmosphere.

Future of Climate Change, EPA
Examines what the future holds for the Earth with climate change.

Consequences of Climate Change, NASA
Describes results that scientists had predicted in the past would result from global climate change: loss of sea ice, accelerated sea level rise and longer, more intense heat waves.

Changes in Sea Level and Ocean Circulation

National Close-up: Science Talk, Washington Post
Glacial melting effects many systems in and surrounding our oceans. Reporters address typical questions regarding these relationships.

Climate Change, Variability and Prediction, NOAA
Find information on NOAA scientists’ interpretations and predictions about sea level from high resolution models.

Section 1: Paleoclimates

Learning Outcomes

  • Carry out an investigation that uses patterns in growth rings in trees as indicators of environmental change.
  • Analyze and interpret data that show changes in temperature over time scales of 1000 and 160,000 years.
  • Use a model to explain the significance of fossil pollen as evidence for climate change.

Inquiring Further

To learn more about each topic, visit the following websites:

Greenland Ice Sheet Project (GISP2):

Greenland Ice Sheet Project 2 (GISP), University of Maine
An overview of the GISP 2 project that began in 1988 and aimed to drill to the bottom of an ice sheet.

3D Model of Greenland’s Ice Sheet, NASA
GISP 2 is the longest deep-ice core ever from the Northern Hemisphere. Describes how scientists use ice-penetrating radar data to build a map of layers deep inside the Greenland Ice Sheet.

Greenland Ice Sheet Project 2: A Record of Climate Change, PBS
Interactive activity describes how climatologists obtain and interpret evidence from the Greenland Ice Sheet to build a picture of Earth’s climate history.

Greenland Melting Trends, Climate.gov
Science on a Sphere visualization shows melting trends in Greenland. Describes how changes in the climate around Greenland can have a world-wide effect.

Techniques for dating deep-sea sediments:

Magnetic Stripes and Isotopic Clocks, USGS
Provides information on astounding observations of ocean rocks that led to the unlocking of an important geological story.

Biostratigraphy, North Central University
Pdf provides useful information on biostratigraphy, the use of fossils to determine the ages of layers of marine sediments. Contains a useful list of definitions.

Biostratigraphy and Microfossils, Australian Academy of Sciences
Provides a useful overview of marine sediments and the many different species of fossils that are used to determine information about past climates.

Paleoclimates in the United States, visit the following web sites:

Investigating Climate Change of Western North America, USGS
Explores various paleoclimatic data and how they can provide information about past climate and ocean and atmospheric processes.

Growth rings on rocks give up North American climate secrets, Berkeley
Learn how rocks, sediments and soil are being used to reconstruct past environments in North America.

Climatologist’s Toolbox, University of Wisconsin
Learn how mud sediment in Walden Pond reveals evidence of its past environments.

Direct Records and Proxies:

Paleoclimatology Data, NOAA
Paleoclimatology data are derived from natural sources such as tree rings, ice cores, corals, and ocean and lake sediments. Follow links to find out about the most widely-used proxy climate data types.

What is dendrochronology, Cornell University
Overview of using tree ring dating. Links to procedures for dating tree material.

About Tree Rings, University of Arizona
Overview of the dating and study of annual rings in trees, including what they tell us.

What is Palynology, Florida Museum
Learn why fossil pollen is a useful tool for determining paleoclimates.

Paleoclimates and Pollen, UCAR
Information on trends and evidence of paleoclimates. Select appropriate tab to find out more background information.

Biological Proxies - Spores and Pollen, USGS
Learn how these microscopic structures for plant reproduction can yield records of vegetation and community changes over time.

Investigating Climate Change of Western North America, USGS
Learn more about climate change and the study of the geological record for Western North America.

Ice Cores:

Core questions: An introduction to ice cores, NASA
Describes where ice cores come from and why glacial ice can be important source of past climate data.

Why Study Ice Cores?, National Ice Core Laboratory (NSF ICF)
Includes a brief description about why ice cores are an important source of information.

Sea Sediments:

Sea Sediments, Enviropedia
Learn more about sediments found on the sea floor and information that can be revealed by investigating these sediments.

Sedimentology 101, Australian Academy of Sciences
Learn the basic principles of sedimentology—the study of how modern sediments are created, transported, deposited and eventually turn into rock.

Glacial Landforms and Sediments:

What is a Glacier?, National Snow and Ice Data Center
Provides information on glacial formation, movement, and associated landforms.

Glaciers and their Landforms, NPS
Provides information on glaciers, their types, movement, and associated landforms with photos of examples from the United States.

Glacial Landforms, Encyclopedia Britannica
A glacial landform is any product of flowing ice and meltwater. Describes different landforms that can be used to model past climates.

Section 2: How Do Earth’s Orbital Variations Affect Climate?

Learning Outcomes

  • Use models to demonstrate the relationship between seasons and the axial tilt of Earth.
  • Use mathematics to illustrate Earth’s elliptical orbit around the Sun and how this shape influences climate.
  • Carry out an investigation to explain how insolation to Earth varies as the inverse square of the distance to the Sun.

Inquiring Further

To learn more about each topic, visit the following websites:

Sunspots and global climate:

The Sun-Climate Connection, NOAA Explores the relationship between solar variability and climate change.

The Sun and Sunspots, NOAA Learn about the effects on Earth’s climate by increases or decreases in sunspot activity.

Milankovitch Cycles:

Milutin Milankovitch: Seeking the Cause of the Ice Ages, American Museum of Natural History Information about the analysis of Milutin Milankovitch that lead to conclusions that Earth’s orbit changes in three cycles of different lengths.

Milankovitch Cycles, NASA Explains the role that the three different aspects of Milankovitch Cycles play in the seasons. The Earth’s Axial Tilt, Obliquity, Precession, and Variations that Affect Climate:

Imagine the Universe - Ask an Astrophysicist, NASA Learn how the Earth’s tilt affects the seasons and the relationship between different angles of the Earth and seasons.

Astronomical Theory of Climate Change, Encyclopedia of Paleoclimatology and Ancient Environments Learn how the Earth’s not-so-circular orbit around the sun affects our climate.

Climate Change: Causes, British Geological Survey Examines how the solar energy received by the earth is both cyclical and variable due to the changes in the earth’s orbit and inclination. Explores how these variations affect global climates.

Paleoclimatology: Explaining the Evidence, NASA Earth Observatory Examines the connection between eccentricity, axial tilt, and precession in relation to past glaciations.

Precession, NASA Describes the development and background behind the idea of precession.

Precession, University of Michigan Describes and explains Earth’s processional motion.

Section 3: How Do Plate Tectonics and Ocean Currents Affect Climate?

Learning Outcomes

  • Use models to explain how ocean currents are affected by Earth’s moving plates.
  • Analyze and interpret data on a world map that shows ocean surface currents to explain the effect of ocean currents on regional and global climate.

Inquiring Further

To learn more about each topic, visit the following websites:

Flow of North Atlantic Deep Water:

Lamont’s Broecker Warns Gases Could Alter Climate: Oceans’ Circulation Could Collapse, Columbia University
Provides useful information on the importance of the NADW and its relationship to other systems.

Ocean Circulation Shut Down by Melting Glaciers After Last Ice Age, NASA
Provides basic information on the North Atlantic Ocean Circulation System as well as the effect of the last ice age on this system.

Major Deep Water Masses, Penn State
Describes the driving forces behind the movement of Earth’s major deep ocean currents.

How Ocean Currents Affect Climate:

How the Oceans Influence Climate, The Global Development Research Center
Looks at the influence of ocean circulation on climate.

Ocean Currents and Climate, National Geographic Education
Learn more about the different oceanic currents and the role those currents play on climate change.

How Plate Tectonics Affect Global Climate:

Three Times Tectonics Changed Climate, Eos
Learn more about how moving continents have drastically changed Earth’s climate.

Plate Tectonics and Climate Change, Open University
Looks at how plate tectonics affects important processes like the formation of mountains and the direction of ocean currents.

Climate Change - Plate Tectonics, Lyndon State College
Looks at how plate tectonics affect climate change.

Section 4: How Do Carbon Dioxide Concentrations in the Atmosphere Affect Global Climate?

Learning Outcomes

  • Analyze and interpret data to explain the relationship between global temperature and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
  • Develop and use a model that demonstrates greenhouse warming in the atmosphere.
  • Obtain information about how carbon dioxide is put into and removed from Earth’s atmosphere.

Inquiring Further

To learn more about the each topic, visit the following web sites:

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC):

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC
Discover IPCC, its mission, and its member constituents.  Examine reports that assess scientific, technical, and socioeconomic dimensions of climate change.

United Nations actions on climate:

Earth Summit +5, UN Department of Public Information
Contains general information on the history of the Earth Summit, its mission, and the key-players involved.

SDG 13: Climate Action, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
Obtain key information on the issues surrounding Climate and the targets and indicators set by the UN to reduce emissions and address climate change.

Greenhouse Gases:

Global Climate Change FAQ, NASA
Provides descriptions of global warming and greenhouse gasses. Also contains several helpful links to other sites on greenhouse gasses.

U.S. Greenhouse Gas Inventory, EPA
View US emission data on greenhouse gases from 1990 through 2016.

The Carbon Cycle:

A Carbon Cycle Science Plan, NOAA
Provides useful graphics and text to introduce the carbon cycle and makes relevant the importance of understanding this cycle.

The Carbon Cycle, NASA Earth Observatory
Explains the parts and processes involved in the carbon cycle.

Understanding the Global Carbon Cycle, Woodwell Climate Research Center
Reviews the basics of the global carbon cycle and how fossil fuels are linked to the cycle.

Carbon Dioxide and Climate:

Emissions of Greenhouse Gases Report, U.S. Energy Information Administration
Provides information on carbon dioxide emissions from US energy and industry.

Responding to Climate Change, NASA
Provides information on mitigating and adapting to our changing climate.

Our Changing Planet, U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP)
Examines initiatives to research and abate global climate change.

Section 5: How Do Glaciers Affect Sea Level?

Learning Outcomes

  • Analyze and interpret data to explain the relationship between the growth and melting of ice sheets and changes in sea level.
  • Use mathematics to analyze and interpret glacial and sea-level data.
  • Use a model to demonstrate the effects of a melting ice sheet on the lithosphere.

Inquiring Further

To learn more about each topic, visit the following websites:

Pressure at the bottom of glacier:

Deformation and Sliding, AntarcticGlaciers.org
Describes how pressure at the base of glaciers affects the behavior of ice at depth within ice sheets and glaciers.

Vostok ice core data:

Vostok Ice Core, NCEI/NOAA
Search the Paleo database for information about the Vostok ice core. Articles include the CO2 record and evidence for Milankovitch cycles.

Vostok Ice Core Data Analysis, SERC Carlton
Examine 160,000 years of ice core data from Vostok Station. Data includes ice age, ice depth, carbon dioxide, methane, dust, and deuterium isotope relative abundance.

How Glaciers Affect Global Sea Level:

Is Sea Level Rising?, NOAA
Reviews terms commonly used to describe sea level change, the causes of long- and short-term sea level change, how sea level change is tied to global warming, how weather impacts sea level, and more.

Ice Sheets, Glaciers, and Warming Seas, NASA
Introduces ice sheet and glacier formation, their importance in regards to influencing and monitoring global climate, their influence on atmospheric and oceanic circulation, how glaciers move, and their impact on sea level change. Also looks at the technology that scientists use to study glaciers and find sea level.

Sea Level and Climate, USGS
Looks at how glacial-interglacial cycles impact sea level and how the melting of today’s glaciers could cause sea level to rise.

Why the Cryosphere Matters, National Snow and Ice Data Center
Reviews the influence of glaciers on sea level. Includes a graph that shows how glaciers have contributed to sea level changes over the past 40 years.

Section 6: How Rising and Falling Sea Levels Modify the Landscape

Learning Outcomes

  • Use a model to explain changes in coastal landscapes caused by a rise in sea level.
  • Use a model to explain changes in coastal landscapes caused by a fall in sea level.

Inquiring Further

To learn more about each topic, visit the following websites:

“Lost continents”:

Zealandia: Earth’s Hidden Continent, GSA Today Read about the portion of former Gondwanaland that is now mostly covered by water.

The missing continent that took 375 years to find, BBC The discovery of an eighth continent under the sea.

Beringian environment:

Postglacial Flooding of the Bering Land Bridge: A Geospatial Animation, INSTAAR University of Colorado
Provides an animation of the Beringia environment that shows sea-level changes during the last 20,000 years.

Bering Land Bridge Animation, University of Colorado Boulder
A geospatial animation of the last ice age.

How Rising and Falling Sea Levels Modify the Landscape:

Geologic History of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USGS
Reviews the geological history of Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The link “Glacial Cape Cod” contains text and maps that explain the role of the Laurentide ice sheet in developing the Cape.

Geology of the Bering Land Bridge National Preserve, National Park Service
Discusses what North America was like during the last ice age, with a focus on the Bering Strait land bridge. Includes various theories about the bridge as well as the plant and animal (including humans) migrations from Asia to North America. Includes color maps.

The Chesapeake Bay: Geologic Product of Rising Sea Level, USGS
Discusses the geological history of the Chesapeake Bay, which is essentially a river valley that was drowned when the Pleistocene ice sheets melted.

Sea Level Rise Impacts: Regional Case Studies, Smithsonian
Global examples of places already facing the consequences of rapid sea level change and how they vary around the world.

Sea Level and the Impact on Defense Installations on Atolls, USGS
Outlines impacts of sea-level rise and wave-driven flooding on freshwater resources on many low-lying atoll islands in the Pacific Ocean.

Section 7: How Might Global Warming Affect Your Community?

Learning Outcomes

  • Construct an argument based on evidence for the ways that higher global temperatures could affect your community.
  • Obtain and evaluate information about the factors that influence climate and the difficulty in predicting the effects of higher global temperatures.

Inquiring Further

To learn more about each topic, visit the following websites:

Calculating energy use:

Estimating Appliance and Home Electronic Energy Use, U.S. Department of Energy
Provides a formula for estimating energy consumption.

Measuring Energy Usage, SaveOnEnergy Provides formula for calculating the annual cost to run a household.

Energy sources that do not produce carbon dioxide:

Solar, U.S. Energy Information Administration
Examine the benefits of solar energy as well as the different ways that solar energy can be harnessed and used.

Wind, U.S. Energy Information Administration
Examine the benefits of wind energy as well as the different ways that wind energy can be harnessed and used.

Your state’s cooperative research and extension service:

Cooperative Extension System, USDA NIFA
An educational network that provides informal and formal resources to learn about climate and other environmental concerns.

Problems with Making Predictions/Computer Models:

Predicting Effects of Climate Change: Increased Incidence of Landslides, Carnegie Melon University
Describes various climate models and their strengths.

Weather Prediction, Climate Prediction. What’s the Diff?, Duke University
Describes how weather predication and climate predication are different and the problems inherent in each.

Models of Future Climate Change:

Climate Models, Climate.gov
Models based on physical processes and data collected over time.

Future Climate Change, US Global Change Research Program
Describes projection of future climate based on the amount of heat trapping gases in the atmosphere.

Future of Climate Change, EPA
Examines what the future holds for the Earth with climate change.

Consequences of Climate Change, NASA
Describes results that scientists had predicted in the past would result from global climate change: loss of sea ice, accelerated sea level rise and longer, more intense heat waves.

National Close-up: Science Talk, Washington Post
Glacial melting effects many systems in and surrounding our oceans. Reporters address typical questions regarding these relationships.