El Nino and Global Warming
El Nino has been known to wreak havoc al around the world, from
Australia to Africa to the United States of America, and despite its
approximate regularity, it is still not possible to predict exactly
when it will appear or how much damage will be caused. Meteorologists
discovered in the late 19th century that El Nino weather events
appeared to be occurring approximately every ten to fifteen years but
in the late 19th century this gradually changed to a strong pulse of
about three years by the early 20th century, at the same time it had
been noted that the temperature was rising above the average. This was
a gradual change until 1976 where changes were occurring, the El Nino
events increased in time to once every four years and the temperature
was still increasing. El Nino is when a reversal in the wind occurs so
it starts from west and then goes east, this causes the sea to warm up
and rise increasing the risk of both drought and flooding depending on
a person’s global location. In the past it has caused fires, damage
and death and many other chain link factors such as an increase in
malaria and a lack of food production so organisations around the
world have found it an important issue to understand how the cycle
works and if there are any solutions to the problem, one problem that
has occurred from this is the various ideas which have risen as causes
of the ‘Christ’s child’.
In Maiana in the Pacific Ocean a group of researchers found evidence
that the El Nino cycle adapts to the average regions climatic
conditions depending on where the weather pattern started. Looking at
the coral reefs Cole and v...
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and thereby changing earth's temperatures and weather patterns. One
team of scientists also suggest that the phase of the
Moon accounts for a global temperature change of about 0.02 to 0.03
degrees Celsius.
Experts are always likely to have conflicting theories about whether
or not El Nino and Global Warming are linked due to trapped warm air
causing the pressure to change the wind direction. Whatever the
‘correct’ answer is may never be found but some ideas such as using
environmentally friendly fuels (hydro electric power (HEP) and solar
power for example) would be sensible to put into action because even
if they don’t help reduce the amount of El Nino weather events that
occur then hopefully it will help reduce the risk from other problems
such as running out of power and reducing the amount of pollution.
coast (as shown in pictures 1 & 2). The area of sea is subject to the
and fall of sea level due to tides is the most apparent aspect, it is also the
Global Warming, much of what does or does not happen forty years from now rests on our actions or inactions taken between now and then. The crucial question is whether we should pour all our resources into mitigation – reducing our carbon emissions. According to scientists who study the climate there are other environmental problems; “we now face a global crises in land use and agriculture that could undermine the health, security, and sustainability of our civilization”.
Figure 6 - How longshore drift works (Brief). Source: Classwork image (originally from Google images)
The Sun’s radiation heats the upper atmosphere, sending the energy toward the earth’s surface and finally mixes with the planet’s counter-rotational currents, creating jetstream flows. The winds flow over the ocean’s surface creating friction that spawns chops, pushing up the seas forming perfect bands of open ocean swell. Pushed on by gravitational forces, the swells speed away from the winds that they came from, moving across the deeps until they feel the drag of the shallows near the coast. As the swells rise up out of themselves, they peak, curling into the liquid dreams that we surfers ride (Kampton 4).
Overall, emissions of CO2 increased by 0.3% to 6.8 tons per person in the United States. Emissions of greenhouse gases other than carbon dioxide, which account for 17% of total greenhouse gas emissions, declined by 0.6%.
90 percent of the effects of global warming are attributed to rising temperatures and heat. This heat tends to affect our oceans due to the ...
Surface current are found in the upper four hundred meters (400m) and makes up about ten percent (10%) of ocean (Briney, n.d.). Surface ocean currents are as a result of friction between the water and atmosphere interface. The wind exerts a force or stress to the ocean surface and causes the water to move. The winds that most affect the oceans’ currents are the Westerlies which produce belts of ocean currents that flow east in the mid-latitude and the Trade winds which generate currents that flow to the west in tropical latitudes. These winds are mainly a result of warm air from the tropics moving towards the poles. The direction of the current is not the same as the direction of the wind but it is deflected at a forty five degree angle. This deflection is resulted from the earth’s rotation on its axis called the Coriolis force/ effect. Coriolis force and constrains by continental land masses cause surface currents to develop into an alm...
The currents at the surface of the ocean are split in to two categories, tidal currents and surface currents. Tidal currents occur around land masses and are influenced mainly by the gravitational pull of our sun and moon. They change rapidly but predictably and contribute to surface currents. Surface currents occur over different areas of earth’s ocean. Two main factors affecting the surface currents are wind and the Coriolis Effect. The Coriolis Effect explains how the rotation of the earth seems to cause a deflection of anything moving above the earth’s surface. It is this effect that causes winds and water in the northern hemisphere to appear to deflect to the right and in the southern hemisphere to deflect to the left. One of the major surface currents is the Gulf Stream. Water in around the Caribbean is warmed by the sun and then carried north and east along the coast North America. These sun warmed waters release their stored energy into the westerly winds and Northern Europe benefits by having a much milder winter than t...
An El Nino happens in intervals of 3-7 years. The formation of this is related to the Pacific Southern Oscillation which is also the cycling of the Pacific Ocean circulation. The Pacific Southern Oscillation (the change of atmospheric pressures) happens when the easterly trade winds collapse, weaken, or even reverse. As this happens, the upwelling stops. The slight weakening of the winds cause a small change in sea surface temperatures, and the wind and pressure changes increase. The warm water of the western Pacific Ocean flow eastward and sea surface temperatures increase on the western coast of South America. When this occurs, the wet weather conditions (originally in the western Pacific) move east, and dry conditions (normally in the east) appear in the west.
Global warming and the greenhouse effect are issues discussed by scientists all the time. A natural process that keeps earths temperature at a livable rate is called the greenhouse effect. The energy from the sun warms up the earth when the rays from the sun are absorbed by greenhouse gasses. The gasses then become trapped in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide, water vapor, methane and nitrous oxide are the most common greenhouse gasses. Greenhouse gases cause the radiant heat of the sun to be trapped in the Earths lower atmosphere which causes global warming. If there weren’t any greenhouse gasses, the earth would be really cold due to very little sun rays being absorbed on the earth. Global warming can and will lead to several problems that affect the environment in which we humans live in. These problems can lead to warmer temperatures all around the world, it can endanger animals and the wildlife, and it can lead to widespread flooding from the glaciers melting. Here are a few more future effects that I will discuss in more detail about. Damage to human health, Severe stress on forests, wetlands, and other natural habitats, how fish will be affected. Global warming is a serious problem that will affect our generation when we are older.
The combination of El Nino and the Southern Oscillation goes by the acronym ENSO. Southern Oscillation is an index which observes higher than average air pressure and the temperature between the ocean and atmosphere in the east central equatorial pacific. El Nino is the warming of the ocean surface. According to NOAA, during this time frame rainfall over Indonesia reduces while rainfall increases over the tropical Pacific Ocean. The combination of El Nino and the Southern Oscillation is the year to year changes in sea surface temperatures, rainfall, surface air pressure and atmospheric circulation that happen over the equatorial Pacific Ocean. El Nino and La Nina are opposite phases of ENSO.
Global Warming is a condition caused by greenhouse gases and human activities. The increased concentration of greenhouse gases due to activities such as deforestation and fossil fuel burning is causing the Earth’s atmosphere and oceans to warm up. As a result of this, global warming has some serious effects in the shape of extreme weather, species extinctions, and rising sea levels. These effects can contribute to the changes that are taking place all over the world, most of which are dangerous enough to pose a threat to the survival of life on Earth in the future.
Carbon dioxide is an important gas that is vital for plant life. This compound is made of a carbon atom and two oxygen atoms. Only 0.0397 of the atmosphere is composed of carbon dioxide. Even though carbon dioxide only makes up a small percentage of the atmosphere, lately increases in the amount carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere have shown to cause an adverse effect on the earth. The rise in amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has caused the earth’s temperature to steadily rise. The term used to describe this effect is called global warming or climate change. Climate change is not something new. Over the past nine hundred thousand years the atmosphere has gone through extended periods of global warming and global cooling. These