Global Warming - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

1 / 44

About This Presentation

Title:

Global Warming

Description:

Global Warming – PowerPoint PPT presentation

Number of Views:389

Avg rating:3.0/5.0

Slides: 45

Provided by: artho

Category:

more less

Transcript and Presenter's Notes

Title: Global Warming

1
Global Warming

Is it happening?
Whats causing it?
What are the solutions?

2
QUESTION 1 is GW happening today?
QUESTION 1 Is global warming real?
3
Greenhouse effect
4
CO2 concentration in the atmosphere, past 1000
yrs. CO2 is one of the most important
greenhouse gases that trap heat. Note the
year, 1800, when the increase began.
5
Same graph, extended over 400,000 yrs--4 ice
ages.Read graph from right to left.Note that
the recent increase in CO2 is unprecedented and
NOT part of a natural cycle.
Present interglacial period
6
The cause mostly fossil fuels
ITS ALL ABOUT ENERGY!
7
Temps since 1860---
8
Temp since 1000

---and
since
1000,
with
future
scenarios

9
Glacier nat park, Montanna-1
Glacier National Park, Montana, is melting.
10
-3
Glacier National Park 1850 150 named
glaciers. 2007 26. 2030 0 expected
11
S Cascade Glacier, Washington, 1928, 1979, 2003.
12
Alaska
13
Austria
14
Arctic melt extent, 1979 and 2003
Expected to be ice-free in summer by 2030. Oct
2007 A big acceleration of the melting process
was reported. Arctic ice could be in an abrupt,
irreversible decline. Maybe we are reaching the
tipping point. Reflectivity feedback creates a
vicious circle that could have serious
consequences for Greenland.
15
Greenland melt extent
16
James Hansen, NASAs chief climatologist
leading expert on global warming Earth could
pass a tipping point during next 10 to 20 yrs
that would initiate irreversible melting of the
Greenland and W Antarctic ice caps, raising sea
levels by 50 feet over the next few centuries and
produce a new planet. We could see 15-ft
sea-level rises by the end of this century.
17
Is this what you want for your grandchildren?It
s a moral issue!
18
Greenland ice is melting
19
Antarctic ice is melting
Cracks like this are appearing in ice shelves in
ever greater numbers.
20
Melting of either Greenland or W Antarctic ice
sheet would raise sea levels by 25 feet.

Permanently flooded NE coast cities include
Boston
Providence
New York
Philadelphia
Baltimore
Washington DC

In Florida Jacksonville Tampa St
Petersburg Ft. Myers Naples Fort
Lauderdale Miami The Keys
21
Global warming is here now!
The number of category 4 5 hurricanes has
increased by 80 during past 30 yrs. Ark
hunters have seen a big drop in migratory birds,
due to warmer winters north of us. Widespread
increase in tree mortality rates in Western U.S.
due to warming, decreased water. pH of entire
ocean is dropping due to CO2 absorption affects
corals, shellfish. Many specific reports of
range shifts of biological species tropical
plants insects, 14 mammal species in western
U.S., northern fish, Canadian pine beetle, coral
reefs, etc. Forest fires are increasing, as
predicted. Dry spells are more prolonged, as
predicted. Snowpack is reduced, as predicted.
More rainfall, more extreme rainfall, as
predicted. Polar Bear now listed as
endangered. Bacterial blooms in rivers,
lakes, coastal waters. ETC!
22
QUESTION 2 Whats causing it?
When we look at the patterns of global temp
changes and other changes (regional temps,
melting ice, rainfall, etc.) ..
(a) the past 150 years
23
we find that natural sources (sun, volcanoes,
etc) cannot explain the patterns or the speed of
change, but human-caused greenhouse gases do.

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
It is unequivocal that Earths climate is
warming, and very likely that human activities
are the major driver.

24
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

Spons by U.N. World Meteorological Org
3000 scientists compile the 6-yr reports
Based on tens of thousands of peer-reviewed
scientific papers published in hundreds of
scientific journals
Results arrived at by consensus
So its a very conservative document

25
(No Transcript)
26
The major U.S. carbon polluters
Electric Power 41
Transportation 33
3/4 from coal
3/4 from cars and trucks
27
COAL

New coal rush
150 planned US plants
1400 worldwide!
1 plant 1 million cars

SOLUTIONS

Energy efficiency alternative energy sources
Carbon capture storage! (50 price incr)
Congress should mandate CCS

28
CARS

U.S. cars 25 mpg,
emit 6 tons of CO2 / yr,
3 times the cars weight!

SOLUTIONS

40 mpg by 2012, 50 mpg by 2020 (hybrids today)
Congress proposes only 35 mpg by 2020!
Plug-in hybrids, attached to renewable
electricity
Most economists best solution is gasoline tax
Cost of externalities 4-20 per gallon!
Trains 6 times as E-eff as cars, use
electricity.

29
QUESTION 3 What are the solutions?Ans
Non-carbon energy sources
1. Efficiency2. Renewables3. Nuclear power
30
The best choice Energy efficiency!
31
Light rail for NW Arkansas!
32
Renewables Wind
33
Photovoltaics
34
Solar-thermal electricity
35
Active solar heating
36
Passive (or direct) solar
37
Geothermal energy
For electricity
For heating cooling
38
Biofuels
From corn today. With research, we will get
biofuels from
switchgrass
and agri waste
39
Also Nuclear power
One of the 9 nuclear power plants in China, where
many more are planned.

No greenhouse gases !
It has serious drawbacks (proliferation is the
most serious)
But MUCH safer for the planet than fossil fuels.

40
Kyoto agreement

Europe 8 reductions during 1990-2012.
US rejects Kyoto, headed for 30 increase
1990-2012. But this might change soon--stay
tuned!
China, India, etc reject Kyoto, increasing
their emissions.
Kyoto is only a start (barely).

41
Sir David King, UKs chief scientific advisor,
many other scientists