Assignment 1: Earth's Global Temperatures - Past, Present and Future
Instructions
Explore the following web pages and the links in them to related online webpages/articles on these sites. Use the information you find to answer the following questions in paragraph form. Expect to write 1 - 4 paragraphs per question, for a total of 2 - 5 pages of text, double spaced, Times New Roman font, 12-point type.
Provide a parenthetical citation of your sources (e.g. (NOAA Climate) or (NPS)). You do not need to include a bliography if you stick to the webpages listed below. If you use other sources, include a full bibliography (APA style) on a separate page, as well as parenthetical citations in your text.
Do not quote the articles, but rather convey the ideas and information in your own words. You may use graphs and images from the articles, but if you do, include a caption with a title and brief description and a link to the webpage on which you found the graph/image. Be sure to explain how the image relates to your answer - your answer cannot simply be a graph you've taken from an online article.
Resources:
National Park Service: Climate Has Changed Throughout Earth's History
NOAA Climate: What's the Hottest Earth's Ever Been?
NOAA Paleoclimatology: A Paleo Perspective on Abrupt Climate Change
Questions
1. Review the two images included on pages 2 and 3 below that illustrate geologic time scales and the terminology used to denote them. Then, briefly characterize Earth's climate throughout geological time during the following eras. Note when (in millions of years ago [mya]) there were ice ages and when the Earth was likely free of ice caps:
Paleozoic Era
Mesozoic Era
Cenozoic Era
2. Discuss in more detail the fluctuating climates during the Pleistocene epoch (which is in the Cenozoic era).
3. Explain the major causes of this climate fluctuation during the Pleistocene epoch.
4. Explain the concept of a positive feedback and discuss 3 major examples of positive feedback mechanisms that have influenced major changes in Earth's climate regimes.
5. What is abrupt climate change? Explain when and how climate may have shifted abruptly in the past (check out the info on the Younger Dryas). Is the possibility of abrupt climate change of concern for our future?
Title: The Geologic Time Scale Description: A creative and artistic depiction of fossil layers. Image Credit: Ray Troll. Accessed online: What is the Geologic Time Scale?
Title: Tables of geological time Author: François Bienvenue Sources: Parc national de Miguasha
Year: 2007 Description: Major subdivisions of geological times. Ages in millions of years (Ma) were accredited by the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS) in 2004. Accessed online: Miguasha National Park: Notions of geologic time