Purpose
The purpose of this lab is to determine if there has been an increase or decrease in CO2 (carbon dioxide) levels based on data collected from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration observatories from 1990 to 2005 and to establish the reason for the change.
Introduction
Carbon dioxide is defined as a colorless, odorless gas and is naturally present in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is released during respiration and combustion and is intimately connected with the cycles of plant and animal life (Robinson, 2003). For millions of years, the production of greenhouses gases was regulated by the natural systems of the Earth and maintained at levels that supported life around the world (Platt, 2013). It has believed that anthropogenic effects (conditions caused by human activity) that are associated with industry, agriculture, and fossil fuel use have increased the amount of CO2 to levels more than what the planet can naturally regulate, and as a result, contributes to atmospheric warming or the greenhouse effect (M.U.S.E. Sources of CO2 Emissions, 2013). The laboratory applied data collected from five observatories located in Alaska, American Samoa, Antarctica, Greenland, and Hawaii.
Hypothesis/Predicted Outcome
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The observatories collect remote atmospheric and solar measurements via a Dobson spectrophotometer to determine stratospheric ozone levels according to the ESRL Global Monitoring Division (2016). Observations of the carbon dioxide levels from the lab were noted.
Results/Outcome
The results of the atmospheric and solar measurements tests between the years of 1990 and 2005 shows an average increase of 25.5 percent. The findings concur with the hypothesis of rising levels of carbon dioxide from data collected at all five observatory points and with studies conducted by Svante August Arrhenius in the 1880’s.
The rapidly increasing amount of carbon dioxide may be one of the factors that cause climate change. As Hillman states, “Concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are increasing, and have done so since the Industrial Revolution.” An atmospheric CO2 concentration, research shows that there is a dramatic increase from 280 parts per million (ppm) in 1750 to 373 ppm in 2002, a rise of the third. Furthermore, the linear chart demonstrated the trend of annual global CO2
Global warming and climate change attributed to increased emission of greenhouse gases have continued to be pressing issues in today’s society since they threaten the stability of the climate, population, and economy of the world (“Meeting the Energy Challenge”, 2007). The challenges associated with global warming and climate change is attributed to the fact that 75 percent of world’s carbon dioxide
It is easy to flip to the index of an astronomy textbook to discover that, say, the Sun lies 150 million kilometers away from Earth. It is far more difficult (if not impossible), however, to picture this distance in our mind. In this exercise, we will learn to access the often unpalatable distances encountered in astronomy by simply scaling the huge distances to more recognizable, familiar numbers. So long as every distance within the system of interest is scaled by the same
So not only were the levels of CO2 in our atmosphere the highest recorded in more than 800,000 years, they were also in excess of the 350 parts per million (ppm) “cautionary threshold” put forth by Dr. James Hansen and other climate scientists in 2008. In fact, CO2 measurements on Mauna Loa in the spring of 2014 exceeded the “extreme danger” Cclimate Cchange threshold of 400 ppm from which some scientists have said that recovery is not possible.
Carbon dioxide is very important in the atmosphere, however only in moderation. For centuries humans have been burning coal, oil, and fossil fuels therefore releasing tons of carbon into the air. The problem with this is that this can cause a problem known as global warming. This is a major climate problem, which has series results on people and the environment. The result on people can be very deadly. Too much carbon in the air can cause cancer.
curious when learning in AOSC200 just how much carbon dioxide levels have increased in the
Carbon Dioxide is a dangerous, poisonous gas, carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas that is appearing more in the atmosphere. The human body and most other species on earth need oxygen to live and breath. Without enough oxygen in the air we would suffocate and so would most other spices. Now there is a way to reverse the amount of CO2 in the air. The answer to this issue, is plant more trees! Trees and other vegetation take in CO2 and convert it to oxygen. Not only could we have CO2 levels on the rise but another big kill around the world is cancer is In 2012, there were an estimated 8.2 million deaths from cancer in the world. Cancer is the second leading cause of death around the world. Im
Secondly, together with deforestation of the planet, the burning of fossil fuels is contributing to a measurable increase in the concentration of carbon dioxide in
Climate change or colloquially known as global warming, now pose a new threat to civilization as the levels of greenhouse gases (GHG) are soaring to new levels. The most significant contributor to greenhouse gasses would be Carbon Dioxide (Co2). The levels of Carbon Dioxide (Co2) gas have risen to levels civilization has not seen before. As such, the effects of these levels are not known to civilization as data gathered from the ice cores drilled in the Antarctica only shows data up to 650,000 years ago. However we can conclude that present CO2 concentrations are higher compared to any time in the last 650,000 years (IPCC 2007). Current carbon dioxide concentrations are hovering around 389 parts per million (ppm) as of September 2011,
Human produced carbon dioxide mainly caused by the burning of natural resources and deforestation has caused the earth’s temperature to rise (Spahni). The carbon dioxide adds to a problem known as the greenhouse effect. Greenhouse effect is the building up of different gases in the earth’s atmosphere causing the earth’s temperature to rise. Consequently, the key players in the greenhouse effect are as follows: water vapor 36-70%, carbon dioxide 9-26%, methane 4-9%, and ozone 3-7% (Russel). Thus, to determine the amount of CO2 and other gases that have been in the atmosphere in the past, ice core samples are taken and examined. There are ice core samples taken from as far back as 650,000 years ago (Siegenthaler). There has
To be able to carry out this investigation successfully, I used the Internet as my main source of information. I searched for information’s such as: what was our average temperatures a 100 years ago, what is our average temperature now? I searched these questions so that I could find out if climate change was actually happening. I also searched CO2 to temperature graph, as I know that there is a strong correlation between Carbon Dioxide levels and temperatures. I also searched the
Values higher than today have occurred only millions of years ago due to massive forcing acting at a global scale, such as the immense and ‘sudden’ (from a geological perspective) release of methane-clathrates of 55 million years ago which drove CO2 concentrations up to 2000 ppm (marking the onset of an era, the Eocene period). According to most observations and climate models available today, current concentrations cannot be justified by natural causes alone without considering human influence. The annual average concentration growth rate of CO2 was larger during the last decade (1, 9 ppm) than it has been since 1960, when continuous direct atmospheric measurements begun (1, 4 ppm per year, although with year-to-year variability). Specifically,
• Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a greenhouse gas that warms the atmosphere. • Since pre-industrial times, atmospheric CO2 concentrations have increased from about 280 parts per million (ppm) to over 380 ppm. Current concentrations of CO2 and other greenhouse gases are unprecedented in at least the last 650,000 years, based on records from gas bubbles trapped in polar ice. • Independent measurements demonstrate that the increased CO2 in the atmosphere comes
Carbon dioxide is the greenhouse gas naturally found in the atmosphere. Since the advent of the Industrial Revolution in the 1700s, humans have devised many inventions that burn fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gases, which, along with other human activities such as clearing land for agriculture or urban settlements, help some of these greenhouse gases accumulate in the atmosphere that in turn trap more heat radiation in the atmosphere causing the Earth’s climate to become warmer than it would naturally (Mastrandrea). This unnatural phenomenon is termed global warming by scientists and they blame it for an increase in the Earth’s surface temperature of about 0.6°C (about 1°F) over the last 100 years (Mastrandrea).
In 1988, the United Nation reported that carbon dioxide levels are nearing a dangerous level of interference with the climate system so they have established the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (ProQuest). Greenhouse gas concentrations such as carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide are continuing to rise during 2014 and it is reaching historic values (International). A variety of independent datasets shows