Weather Vs. Climate Weather is the set of environmental

conditions that occur day to day or even minute to minute

Climate is the set of environmental conditions that is expected to occur for a given area over any given year

                                                                   

The Earth’s Energy Balance In order for Earth to maintain its overall climate it

must stay within a relatively small temperature range If earth loses more energy than energy that it gains it

will cool If earth gains more energy than it loses it will heat up The mechanism that allows earth to remain in this

equilibrium is called an energy balance Because earth’s temperature remains reasonably

consistent we can deduce that the energy coming into earth must equal the energy leaving earth

Transfer of Energy There are three ways energy can be transferred

from one object to anotherRadiation: The transfer of energy in which atoms or

molecules emit electromagnetic waves These waves carry the energy through space and

deposit it only when they interact with some form of matter

Radiant Energy from the Sun (short wave) travels long distances until it interacts with solid matter on Earth. Earth then radiates energy back into space (long wave) as it is heated by the sun

Transfer of EnergyConvection/Advection The transfer of energy by the movement of

particles in a fluid (liquid or gas) Convection is vertical transfer advection is

horizontal transfer Hot air rises This happens because if air is

warmer than its surroundings it becomes less dense. As it becomes less dense it will “float” on the more dens air around it – Convection!

Transfer of EnergyConduction: The transfer of energy in which highly

energetic atoms or molecules from one object collide with less energetic atoms or molecules from another object giving them some of their energy

In this case the atoms will stay in their original locations but the energy is allowed to move by this contact

Reflection and Absorption of EnergyReflection As the Sun’s rays reach earth some of the energy is reflected by

the ocean, atmosphere, clouds, snow, ice The amount of reflectivity of a surface called it’s AlbedoAbsorptionAn object or material that absorbs energy and becomes warmer is

called a heat sinkThe heat capacity of an object is the measure of how much heat a

substance requires to raise its temperature or how much energy it releases as it cools

Heat capacity is measured in joules of energy per kilogram degree J/(Kg ºC).

Albedo CalculationsThe amount of energy absorbed by any surface is

calculated by: Amount of energy (J) x (1-albedo)

For example if a glacier is receiving 10 000 J of energy over a square meter and the albedo is 0.4, the actual amount of energy absorbed is:

10 000 J x (1-0.4)= 6 000 J

Now calculate the amount of energy absorbed by a parking lot with an albedo of 0.02 and receiving 8000 J/m2

Specific Heat EquationThe amount of heat energy (q) gained or lost

by a substance is equal to the mass of the substance (m) multiplied by its specific heat capacity (C) multiplied by the change in temperature (final temperature - initial temperature = t)

Q = m c t

Specific Heat QuestionsREMEMBER GRASP PROBLEM SOLVING!

1. How much energy is required to bring 1kg (1L) of water from 20 C to a boil? Note the Specific Heat Capacity of water is 4186 J/Kg C

2. How hot will a 50Kg rock in the dessert get if it receives 592.5 KJ of energy from the sun (C= 790J/Kg C)

Using Heat Capacity and AlbedoNow that we understand Heat Capacity and

can calculate the amount of energy absorbed by a surface we can use the equation for heat capacity to predict the temperature change of a surface

Assuming the asphalt in the a previous question had a mass of 84kg, how much would you expect the surface temperature to rise?

SubstanceSpecific Heat Capacity

(J/kgoC)

Air, dry (sea level) 1005

Asphalt 920

Bone 440

Ice (0oC) 2093

Granite 790

Sandy clay 1381

Quartz sand 830

Water, pure 4186

Wet mud 2512

Wood 1700

Putting it all togetherThe passive solar panels connected to a

backyard swimming pool have and Albedo of 0.05. The panels will receive 40000 KJ of energy from the sun per hour on an average sunny day. Assuming no heat loss from the pool water to the atmosphere how much might the temperature of the pool be raised in a typical afternoon (4 hours). The volume of an average sized swimming pool is 36 m3 (36000 Kg).