EARTH'S CHANGING CLIMATE UNIT EXAMS

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Climate researchers are creating a computer simulation to help them understand changes in the Earth system. They want to use the simulation to see what happens when they increase the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. What should their simulation show about energy absorbed by Earth’s surface? When carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increases, the amount of energy absorbed by Earth’s surface should

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Scientists found evidence of a time period 3 billion years ago when less energy entered the Earth system than exited. What is one change to the atmosphere that could have caused this, and how did it change the amount of energy in the Earth system?

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The Karoo Ice Age started about 360 million years ago and lasted for about 40 million years. During this time, less energy entered the Earth system than exited. What is one change to the atmosphere that could have caused this?

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The graph above shows global temperature changes between the years 1880 and 2011. Which of the following best describes the changes seen in the graph?

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What happens when energy hits sulfur dioxide?

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Using evidence from rocks, scientists have found that from 300 to 290 million years ago, the amount of methane in the atmosphere increased. What happened to the energy absorbed by Earth's surface during this time? During this time, the amount of energy absorbed by Earth’s surface

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Scientists are using a computer simulation to test ideas about climate on Earth. Looking at one period of time in the simulation, they notice that more energy entered the Earth system than exited. How might the amount of carbon dioxide have changed to cause this, and how would this have changed the energy in the Earth system? In the simulation,

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Scientists study tree rings to learn more about Earth’s past climate. They found a time period when the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere decreased.
What happened to energy in the Earth system when carbon dioxide in the atmosphere decreased?
Energy in the Earth system

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What is one reason that carbon dioxide is increasing in the atmosphere today?

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Scientists who study the atmosphere often need to take samples of the atmosphere in order to learn more. They take some atmosphere samples near the ground. They take other atmosphere samples high in the air, while flying in a helicopter. What would the scientists find out about the samples?

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Climate researchers in Greenland can use ice core samples to tell them about carbon dioxide in the atmosphere in the past. The researchers have found an ice core sample that shows there was a period when carbon dioxide in the atmosphere decreased. What happened to the amount of energy absorbed by Earth’s surface during this time? During this time, the amount of energy absorbed by Earth’s surface

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Some bacteria produce methane during digestion. If the amount of these bacteria decreased a lot, the amount of methane in the atmosphere would decrease. What would happen to energy in the Earth system if this happened? If methane decreased,

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From about 360 to 299 million years ago, there was a large increase in the amount of swampland on Earth, which scientists think led to a large increase in the amount of methane in Earth’s atmosphere. What happened to energy in the Earth system when the amount of methane in the atmosphere increased? Energy in the Earth system

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When making an argument about how climate change is affecting the ice cover on Earth, which of the following would be the least effective type of evidence to support your argument?

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What can humans do to help keep carbon dioxide and methane in Earth's atmosphere from increasing?

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The Pleistocene Epoch lasted for about 2.6 million years. During this time, there were a few time periods when the amount of methane in the atmosphere decreased. What would scientists expect to observe about the amount of energy absorbed by Earth’s surface during the time periods when methane decreased? During these time periods, the amount of energy absorbed by Earth’s surface

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In the last 5 million years of the Permian period in Earth’s history, carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increased. How did energy in the Earth system change during this time?

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Climate scientists are working on a computer simulation to help them understand Earth’s climate. Looking at one period of time in the simulation, they see that more energy entered the Earth system than exited. How could the amount of methane have changed to cause this, and what effect would this have on energy in the Earth system?

1

Eleanor wants to do an experiment in order to analyze what is in the atmosphere. What do you think she will find?

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Some factories have started using large tanks of bacteria to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. As more factories start to do this, the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere could decrease over time. If this happens, and if energy coming from the sun and the amount of carbon dioxide being put into the atmosphere otherwise stay the same, what would happen to the total amount of energy in the Earth system and to global average temperature? If there is a change, explain how that change would happen.

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Combustion engines became common in the mid-1800s when people began to use them to power ships, trains, and machinery in factories. Combustion engines add carbon dioxide to the air, and as a result, carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increased quickly. How did this change the total amount of energy in the Earth system, and how did this change happen? How did this affect global average temperature?

EARTH'S CHANGING CLIMATE UNIT EXAMS

Scientists found evidence of a time period 3 billion years ago when less energy entered the Earth system than exited. What is one change to the atmosphere that could have caused this, and how did it change the amount of energy in the Earth system?

The Karoo Ice Age started about 360 million years ago and lasted for about 40 million years. During this time, less energy entered the Earth system than exited. What is one change to the atmosphere that could have caused this?

The graph above shows global temperature changes between the years 1880 and 2011. Which of the following best describes the changes seen in the graph?

What happens when energy hits sulfur dioxide?

Using evidence from rocks, scientists have found that from 300 to 290 million years ago, the amount of methane in the atmosphere increased. What happened to the energy absorbed by Earth's surface during this time? During this time, the amount of energy absorbed by Earth’s surface

Scientists study tree rings to learn more about Earth’s past climate. They found a time period when the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere decreased. What happened to energy in the Earth system when carbon dioxide in the atmosphere decreased?Energy in the Earth system

What is one reason that carbon dioxide is increasing in the atmosphere today?

Scientists who study the atmosphere often need to take samples of the atmosphere in order to learn more. They take some atmosphere samples near the ground. They take other atmosphere samples high in the air, while flying in a helicopter. What would the scientists find out about the samples?

Some bacteria produce methane during digestion. If the amount of these bacteria decreased a lot, the amount of methane in the atmosphere would decrease. What would happen to energy in the Earth system if this happened? If methane decreased,

When making an argument about how climate change is affecting the ice cover on Earth, which of the following would be the least effective type of evidence to support your argument?

What can humans do to help keep carbon dioxide and methane in Earth's atmosphere from increasing?

In the last 5 million years of the Permian period in Earth’s history, carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increased. How did energy in the Earth system change during this time?

Eleanor wants to do an experiment in order to analyze what is in the atmosphere. What do you think she will find?

Scientists found evidence of a time period 3 billion years ago when less energy entered the Earth system than exited. What is one change to the atmosphere that could have caused this, and how did it change the amount of energy in the Earth system?

The Karoo Ice Age started about 360 million years ago and lasted for about 40 million years. During this time, less energy entered the Earth system than exited. What is one change to the atmosphere that could have caused this?

The graph above shows global temperature changes between the years 1880 and 2011. Which of the following best describes the changes seen in the graph?

What happens when energy hits sulfur dioxide?

Using evidence from rocks, scientists have found that from 300 to 290 million years ago, the amount of methane in the atmosphere increased. What happened to the energy absorbed by Earth's surface during this time? During this time, the amount of energy absorbed by Earth’s surface

Scientists study tree rings to learn more about Earth’s past climate. They found a time period when the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere decreased. What happened to energy in the Earth system when carbon dioxide in the atmosphere decreased?Energy in the Earth system

What is one reason that carbon dioxide is increasing in the atmosphere today?

Scientists who study the atmosphere often need to take samples of the atmosphere in order to learn more. They take some atmosphere samples near the ground. They take other atmosphere samples high in the air, while flying in a helicopter. What would the scientists find out about the samples?

Some bacteria produce methane during digestion. If the amount of these bacteria decreased a lot, the amount of methane in the atmosphere would decrease. What would happen to energy in the Earth system if this happened? If methane decreased,

When making an argument about how climate change is affecting the ice cover on Earth, which of the following would be the least effective type of evidence to support your argument?

What can humans do to help keep carbon dioxide and methane in Earth's atmosphere from increasing?

In the last 5 million years of the Permian period in Earth’s history, carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increased. How did energy in the Earth system change during this time?

Eleanor wants to do an experiment in order to analyze what is in the atmosphere. What do you think she will find?

Scientists study tree rings to learn more about Earth’s past climate. They found a time period when the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere decreased.
What happened to energy in the Earth system when carbon dioxide in the atmosphere decreased?
Energy in the Earth system

Scientists study tree rings to learn more about Earth’s past climate. They found a time period when the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere decreased.
What happened to energy in the Earth system when carbon dioxide in the atmosphere decreased?
Energy in the Earth system