OCR ASA Level Geography Climate Change - Teacher Resource 3

Teacher Resource 2

Task 2: Glossary of Key Terms: Answers

Adaptation / It involves taking practical actions to manage risks from climateimpacts, protect communities and strengthen the resilience of the economy. Adaptation refers to dealing with theimpactsof climate change.
Albedo / Refers to the ratio of light from the sun that is reflected by the Earth’s surface to the light received by it. Surfaces with a high albedo (e.g. snow and ice) generally contribute to cooling, whereas surfaces with a low albedo (e.g. forests) generally contribute to warming.
Anthropogenic climate change / Refers to the production of greenhouse gases emitted by human activity that have contributed to contemporary climate change.
Axial Tilt / The angle between a planet's rotationalaxisat its north pole and a line perpendicular to the orbital plane of the planet.
Carbon Capture and Storage / The process ofcapturing wastecarbondioxide (CO2) from large point sources, such as fossil fuel power plants, transporting it to a storagesite, and depositing it where it will not enter the atmosphere, normally an underground geologicalstore.
Carbon Cycle / A biogeochemical cycle where carbon is cycled between the atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere and geosphere.
Carbon Neutral / A process where there is no net release of CO2. For example, growing biomass takes CO2 out of the atmosphere, while burning it releases the gas again. The process would be carbon neutral if the amount taken out and the amount released were identical. A company or country can also achieve carbon neutrality by means of carbon offsetting.
Carbon Sinks / Processes that remove more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than they release. Both the terrestrial biosphere and oceans can act as carbon sinks.
Climate / The long-term average weather of a region including typical weather patterns, the frequency and intensity of storms, cold spells, and heat waves. Climate is not the same as weather.
Climate Modelling / Is the process of using systems of mathematical equations that when brought together allow simulations or predictions of future climate change to be made.

Version 11© OCR 2017

Climate Change

Climate Proxies / Evidence such as ice cores, pollen data and tree rings that provide evidence for past climates.
Conference of the Parties (COP) / The supreme decision-making body comprised of the parties that have ratified the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. It meets on an annual basis. As of February 2003, it is comprised of 188 countries. E.g. Paris COP-21
Eccentricity / The degree to which the Earth’s orbit is circular.
Emissions Trading / A market mechanism that allows emitters (countries, companies or facilities) to buy emissions from or sell emissions to other emitters. Emissions trading is expected to bring down the costs of meeting emission targets by allowing those who can achieve reductions less expensively to sell excess reductions (e.g. reductions in excess of those required under some regulation) to those for whom achieving reductions is more costly.
Geoengineering / The deliberate large-scale intervention in the Earth's natural systems to counteract climate change e.g. cloud whitening.
Global Warming / The progressive gradual rise of the Earth's average surface temperature thought to be caused in part by increased concentrations of GHGs in the atmosphere.
Ice Cores / Tubes of ice extracted in order to analyse a range of isotopic data, providing a proxy for past climates.
Interglacial / A geological interval of warmer global average temperature lasting thousands of years that separates consecutive glacial periods within an ice age.
Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change (IPCC) / The IPCC was established in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization and the UN Environment Programme. The IPCC is responsible for providing the scientific and technical foundation for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) primarily through the publication of periodic assessment reports (see "Second Assessment Report" and "Third Assessment Report").
Kyoto Protocol / An international agreement adopted in December 1997 in Kyoto, Japan. The Protocol sets binding emission targets for developed countries that would reduce their emissions on average 5.2% below 1990 levels.
Mauna Loa Record / The record of measurement of atmospheric CO2concentrations taken at Mauna Loa Observatory, Mauna Loa, Hawaii, since March 1958. This record shows the continuing increase in average annual atmospheric CO2 concentrations.
Milankovitch Cycle / Describes the collective effects of changes in the Earth's movements upon its climate e.g. eccentricity, axial tilt, precession.
Natural Forcing / Any influence on climate that originates from outside the climate system itself e.g. changes to surface albedo.
Negative Feedback / A process that results in a reduction in the response of a system to an external influence. For example, increased plant productivity in response to global warming would be a negative feedback on warming, because the additional growth would act as a sink CO2, reducing the atmospheric CO2concentration.
Positive Feedback / A process that results in an amplification of the response of a system to an external influence. For example, increased atmospheric water vapour in response to global warming would be a positive feedback on warming, because water vapour is a GHG.
Precession / A change in the orientation of the rotational axis of a rotating body.
Quaternary / The most recent period of geological time i.e. the last 2.6 million years to the present.
Source / Any process or activity that results in the net release of greenhouse gases, aerosols, or precursors of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
Tipping Point / A tipping point is a threshold for change, which, when reached, results in a process that is difficult to reverse. Scientists say it is urgent that policy makers halve global carbon dioxide emissions over the next 50 years or risk triggering changes that could be irreversible.
Uncertainty / Is a prominent feature of the benefits and costs of climate change. Decision makers need to compare risk of premature or unnecessary actions with risk of failing to take actions that subsequently prove to be warranted. This is complicated by potential irreversibility in climate impacts and long term investments.

Climate Change