Title: Climate And Weather — LearnCoachAssist

Q: What are the five main layers of Earth's atmosphere, from lowest to highest?
A: Troposphere, Stratosphere, Mesosphere, Thermosphere, and Exosphere

Q: In which layer of the atmosphere does most weather occur?
A: The troposphere, which extends from the surface to about 12 km altitude

Q: What is the tropopause?
A: The boundary between the troposphere and the stratosphere, where temperature stops decreasing with altitude

Q: Why is the stratosphere important for life on Earth?
A: It contains the ozone layer, which absorbs most of the Sun's harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation

Q: What happens to temperature in the mesosphere as altitude increases?
A: Temperature decreases with altitude, making it the coldest layer of the atmosphere (down to about −90°C)

Q: What is the primary composition of Earth's atmosphere?
A: Approximately 78% nitrogen (N₂), 21% oxygen (O₂), and 1% other gases including argon and CO₂

Q: What causes wind?
A: Differences in air pressure caused by uneven heating of Earth's surface; air moves from high-pressure to low-pressure areas

Q: What is the Coriolis effect?
A: The deflection of moving air (and water) due to Earth's rotation — rightward in the Northern Hemisphere and leftward in the Southern Hemisphere

Q: What are the three main global wind belts?
A: Trade winds (0°–30°), westerlies (30°–60°), and polar easterlies (60°–90°)

Q: What is a front in meteorology?
A: A boundary between two air masses of different temperature and humidity (e.g., cold front, warm front, stationary front)

Q: How does a cold front form and what weather does it bring?
A: A cold air mass pushes under a warm air mass, causing rapid uplift; it often brings thunderstorms, heavy rain, and a sharp temperature drop

Q: What is an air mass?
A: A large body of air with relatively uniform temperature and humidity characteristics, acquired from the region where it forms

Q: What is the difference between weather and climate?
A: Weather is the short-term state of the atmosphere; climate is the long-term average of weather patterns over 30+ years

Q: Name the five major climate zones in the Köppen classification system.
A: Tropical (A), Dry (B), Temperate (C), Continental (D), and Polar (E)

Q: What characterizes a tropical climate zone?
A: High temperatures year-round (avg. >18°C every month) and significant rainfall, supporting rainforests and savannas

Q: What defines an arid (dry) climate zone?
A: Evaporation exceeds precipitation; found in deserts and semi-arid steppes with sparse vegetation

Q: What is a Mediterranean climate?
A: A temperate climate with dry, hot summers and mild, wet winters, found in regions like southern Europe and California

Q: How does continental climate differ from oceanic climate?
A: Continental climates have larger temperature extremes between seasons because land heats/cools faster than water

Q: What factors influence a region's climate?
A: Latitude, altitude, proximity to oceans, ocean currents, prevailing winds, and topography

Q: What is the greenhouse effect?
A: A natural process where certain atmospheric gases trap outgoing infrared radiation, warming Earth's surface above what it would be otherwise

Q: Name four major greenhouse gases.
A: Carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), nitrous oxide (N₂O), and water vapor (H₂O)

Q: Why is CO₂ considered the most important anthropogenic greenhouse gas?
A: Because of the large volume emitted by burning fossil fuels, deforestation, and industrial processes, and its long atmospheric lifetime

Q: What is the difference between the natural and enhanced greenhouse effect?
A: The natural greenhouse effect keeps Earth habitable (~15°C avg.); the enhanced effect is the additional warming from human-produced greenhouse gases

Q: How does methane compare to CO₂ as a greenhouse gas?
A: Methane is about 80× more potent than CO₂ over a 20-year period, but has a shorter atmospheric lifetime (~12 years)

Q: What is radiative forcing?
A: The difference between incoming solar energy and outgoing energy radiated back to space; a positive value means net warming

Q: What is global warming?
A: The long-term increase in Earth's average surface temperature, primarily due to human emissions of greenhouse gases since the Industrial Revolution

Q: By how much has Earth's average temperature risen since pre-industrial times?
A: Approximately 1.1–1.2°C as of the early 2020s

Q: What is the primary human activity driving global warming?
A: The burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural gas) for energy, transportation, and industry

Q: How do ice cores help scientists study past climates?
A: Trapped air bubbles in ice cores preserve ancient atmospheric gas concentrations, allowing measurement of CO₂ and temperature over hundreds of thousands of years

Q: What is a climate feedback loop? Give an example.
A: A process that amplifies or dampens warming; e.g., ice-albedo feedback — melting ice exposes darker surfaces that absorb more heat, causing further warming

Q: What is climate sensitivity?
A: The amount of global warming expected from a doubling of atmospheric CO₂ concentration, estimated at 2.5–4°C

Q: What are the main steps of the carbon cycle?
A: Carbon moves through the atmosphere, biosphere, oceans, and geosphere via photosynthesis, respiration, decomposition, ocean absorption, and fossil fuel formation/combustion

Q: What role do oceans play in the carbon cycle?
A: Oceans act as a major carbon sink, absorbing about 25–30% of human-emitted CO₂, but this causes ocean acidification

Q: What is a carbon sink?
A: A natural or artificial reservoir that absorbs more carbon than it releases, such as forests, oceans, and soil

Q: What is ocean acidification and why does it matter?
A: Excess CO₂ dissolving in seawater forms carbonic acid, lowering pH, which harms coral reefs, shellfish, and marine food webs

Q: How does deforestation affect the carbon cycle?
A: It releases stored carbon as CO₂ and removes trees that would otherwise absorb CO₂ through photosynthesis

Q: What is the biological carbon pump?
A: The process by which marine organisms fix CO₂ via photosynthesis and transport carbon to the deep ocean when they die and sink

Q: What is the difference between a carbon source and a carbon sink?
A: A source releases more carbon than it absorbs (e.g., burning fossil fuels); a sink absorbs more than it releases (e.g., growing forests)

Q: What is El Niño?
A: A climate pattern where warmer-than-normal sea surface temperatures develop in the central and eastern tropical Pacific, affecting global weather

Q: What is La Niña?
A: The opposite of El Niño — cooler-than-normal sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern tropical Pacific

Q: What is ENSO?
A: El Niño–Southern Oscillation, the coupled ocean-atmosphere cycle that alternates between El Niño, La Niña, and neutral phases every 2–7 years

Q: How does El Niño affect weather in the Americas?
A: It typically brings wetter conditions to the southern U.S. and South America, and drier conditions to Australia and Southeast Asia

Q: What is the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI)?
A: A measure of the air pressure difference between Tahiti and Darwin, Australia; negative values indicate El Niño, positive values indicate La Niña

Q: How does La Niña affect Atlantic hurricane activity?
A: La Niña reduces wind shear over the Atlantic, which tends to increase the number and intensity of hurricanes

Q: What is a hurricane?
A: A large rotating storm system with sustained winds of at least 119 km/h (74 mph), forming over warm tropical ocean water (≥26.5°C)

Q: What are the categories of the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale?
A: Category 1 (119–153 km/h) to Category 5 (≥252 km/h), based on maximum sustained wind speed

Q: What is the eye of a hurricane?
A: The calm, clear center of the storm, surrounded by the eyewall, which contains the most intense winds and rainfall

Q: What is storm surge?
A: An abnormal rise in sea level caused by a hurricane's winds pushing ocean water ashore; it is often the most deadly aspect of a hurricane

Q: How do tornadoes form?
A: From severe thunderstorms when wind shear creates a rotating updraft (mesocyclone) that extends to the ground as a funnel

Q: What scale measures tornado intensity?
A: The Enhanced Fujita (EF) Scale, ranging from EF0 (light damage) to EF5 (incredible destruction)

Q: What is Tornado Alley?
A: A region in the central United States (Great Plains) prone to frequent tornadoes due to the collision of warm, moist Gulf air and cold, dry Arctic air

Q: What is a derecho?
A: A widespread, long-lived straight-line windstorm associated with a fast-moving band of severe thunderstorms

Q: What is the heat index?
A: A measure of how hot it feels when relative humidity is combined with actual air temperature

Q: How does climate change affect sea levels?
A: Through thermal expansion of warming ocean water and melting of glaciers and ice sheets; sea levels have risen ~20 cm since 1900

Q: What are the projected sea level rise scenarios by 2100?
A: Depending on emissions, sea levels could rise 0.3 m to over 1 m by 2100 (IPCC estimates), threatening coastal communities

Q: How does climate change affect biodiversity?
A: Shifting habitats, altered migration patterns, coral bleaching, and increased extinction risk for species unable to adapt fast enough

Q: What is coral bleaching?
A: Stressed corals expel their symbiotic zooxanthellae algae, turning white; primarily caused by elevated sea temperatures

Q: How does climate change impact agriculture?
A: Through altered growing seasons, increased droughts and floods, heat stress on crops, and shifting pest and disease ranges

Q: What are climate refugees?
A: People forced to leave their homes due to climate-related events such as sea level rise, extreme droughts, or recurring natural disasters

Q: How does climate change affect the water cycle?
A: Warmer air holds more moisture, leading to more intense precipitation events in some regions and prolonged droughts in others

Q: What is permafrost thaw and why is it concerning?
A: Permanently frozen ground melting releases stored methane and CO₂, creating a dangerous positive feedback loop that accelerates warming

Q: What is ocean stratification and how does warming cause it?
A: Warming surface waters become less dense, reducing vertical mixing with cooler deep water, limiting nutrient and oxygen circulation

Q: How does climate change intensify wildfires?
A: Higher temperatures, prolonged droughts, and drier vegetation increase the frequency, size, and severity of wildfires

Q: What are tipping points in the climate system?
A: Critical thresholds beyond which changes become self-reinforcing and irreversible, such as collapse of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet

Q: What is climate change mitigation?
A: Actions to reduce or prevent greenhouse gas emissions, such as transitioning to renewable energy, improving efficiency, and protecting forests

Q: What is climate change adaptation?
A: Adjusting systems and practices to minimize harm from climate impacts, such as building sea walls, developing drought-resistant crops, and improving early warning systems

Q: What is carbon capture and storage (CCS)?
A: Technology that captures CO₂ from industrial sources or the atmosphere and stores it underground in geological formations

Q: What is a carbon tax?
A: A fee imposed on the burning of carbon-based fuels, designed to internalize the cost of CO₂ emissions and incentivize cleaner alternatives

Q: What is a cap-and-trade system?
A: A market-based approach that sets a total emissions cap and allows companies to buy and sell emission allowances

Q: What are nature-based solutions for climate change?
A: Using ecosystems to sequester carbon and build resilience, including reforestation, wetland restoration, and sustainable agriculture

Q: What is the Paris Agreement?
A: A 2015 international treaty under the UNFCCC where nations agreed to limit global warming to well below 2°C, preferably 1.5°C, above pre-industrial levels

Q: What are Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)?
A: Each country's individual climate action plan outlining how it will reduce emissions and adapt, submitted under the Paris Agreement

Q: How many countries have signed the Paris Agreement?
A: 196 parties (195 countries plus the EU) have signed, making it one of the most widely adopted treaties in history

Q: What is the goal of net-zero emissions?
A: Achieving a balance where the amount of greenhouse gases emitted equals the amount removed from the atmosphere

Q: What is the IPCC?
A: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a UN body that assesses the science related to climate change and publishes comprehensive assessment reports

Q: What is the UNFCCC?
A: The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the foundational international treaty (1992) that established a framework for climate negotiations

Q: What is the significance of the 1.5°C warming target?
A: Beyond 1.5°C, risks of severe impacts like coral reef loss, extreme weather, and food insecurity increase dramatically (IPCC Special Report, 2018)

Q: What are Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions?
A: Scope 1: direct emissions; Scope 2: indirect from purchased energy; Scope 3: all other indirect emissions in a company's value chain

Q: What is solar photovoltaic (PV) energy?
A: Electricity generated by solar cells that convert sunlight directly into electrical current using the photovoltaic effect

Q: How do wind turbines generate electricity?
A: Wind spins the turbine blades connected to a generator, converting kinetic energy of moving air into electrical energy

Q: What is hydroelectric power?
A: Electricity generated by using the kinetic energy of flowing or falling water to spin turbines, typically at dams or run-of-river installations

Q: What is geothermal energy?
A: Energy derived from heat within the Earth, used to generate electricity or provide direct heating via steam or hot water from underground reservoirs

Q: What is biomass energy?
A: Energy produced from organic materials (wood, crop waste, animal manure) through combustion, gasification, or anaerobic digestion

Q: What are the advantages of renewable energy over fossil fuels?
A: Lower greenhouse gas emissions, inexhaustible supply, reduced air pollution, energy independence, and declining costs

Q: What is the main challenge of solar and wind energy?
A: Intermittency — the sun doesn't always shine and the wind doesn't always blow, requiring energy storage or grid balancing solutions

Q: What is energy storage and why is it important for renewables?
A: Technologies like batteries, pumped hydro, and hydrogen that store excess energy for use when renewable generation is low

Q: What is the global warming potential (GWP) of a gas?
A: A measure comparing the heat-trapping ability of a greenhouse gas to CO₂ over a specific time period (usually 100 years)

Q: What is albedo in climate science?
A: The reflectivity of a surface; ice and snow have high albedo (reflect sunlight), while dark surfaces like oceans absorb more heat

Q: What is the jet stream and how does it affect weather?
A: A narrow band of fast-moving air in the upper troposphere that steers weather systems; changes in its path can bring unusual cold or warm spells

Q: What is an atmospheric river?
A: A long, narrow corridor of concentrated moisture in the atmosphere that can deliver heavy precipitation when it makes landfall

Q: What is the urban heat island effect?
A: Cities are warmer than surrounding rural areas due to concrete, asphalt, reduced vegetation, and waste heat from human activities

Q: What is the dew point?
A: The temperature at which air becomes saturated and water vapor begins to condense into liquid water or dew

Q: What causes seasons on Earth?
A: The tilt of Earth's axis (23.5°) relative to its orbital plane, causing different hemispheres to receive varying amounts of solar radiation throughout the year

Q: What is an inversion layer and how does it trap pollution?
A: A layer of warm air above cooler air that prevents vertical mixing, trapping pollutants and smog near the ground

Q: What is the difference between weather forecasting and climate projection?
A: Weather forecasting predicts specific conditions days ahead; climate projection models long-term trends over decades using emission scenarios

Q: What is the thermohaline circulation?
A: A global ocean conveyor belt driven by differences in water temperature and salinity, redistributing heat around the planet

Q: How could climate change disrupt thermohaline circulation?
A: Freshwater from melting ice sheets could dilute salty North Atlantic water, weakening the sinking that drives the circulation and cooling Europe

Q: What is a drought and what makes it a climate concern?
A: A prolonged period of below-normal precipitation; climate change increases drought severity and frequency in many regions

Q: What is desertification?
A: The degradation of land in arid areas into desert, driven by climate change, deforestation, and unsustainable farming practices

Q: What is the ozone hole and how is it different from the greenhouse effect?
A: The ozone hole is a thinning of stratospheric O₃ caused by CFCs; the greenhouse effect involves trapping heat by different gases — they are separate issues