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Special Topics

Special Topics. Global Warming and Ocean Acidification. Global Warming and Ocean Acidification. The Atmosphere. Layer of gases surrounding the planet Troposphere Nitrogen Oxygen Carbon dioxide Methane. The Greenhouse Effect. The Greenhouse Effect.

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Special Topics

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  1. Special Topics Global Warming and Ocean Acidification

  2. Global Warming and Ocean Acidification The Atmosphere • Layer of gases surrounding the planet • Troposphere • Nitrogen • Oxygen • Carbon dioxide • Methane

  3. The Greenhouse Effect

  4. The Greenhouse Effect

  5. Human activity releases greenhouse gases: • Burning of fossil fuels (oil and coal) – releases ¾ of the CO2 • Deforestation • Puts CO2 into the atmosphere by burning • Less CO2 is absorbed by trees • Methane is released by • Burning fossil fuels • Digestive system of cattle and sheep • Rice paddies

  6. The scale of slash and burn agriculture in Western Brazil is almost incomprehensible. During the dry season the forest is put to the torch to make way for unsustainable farming and cattle raising.

  7. Madagascar

  8. Consequences of Global Warming • Rising sea levels as ice caps of Greenland and Antarctica melt • Changes in precipitation patterns • Changes in habitat • The Arctic and Antarctic are warming 2-3X the global rate • Loss of ice results in further warming • Bright white ice reflects solar energy back to space • Dark open water absorbs heat Global Warming Animation

  9. Global Warming and Polar Bears

  10. 6CO2 + 6H2O + E C6H12O6 + 6O2 C6H12O6 + 6O2 6CO2 + 6H2O + ATP

  11. Increased CO2 in the ocean results in acidification of the Ocean. Ocean acidification: NRDC CO2 highly soluble in sea water. The oceans hold more than 50X more CO2 than the atmosphere.

  12. Baleen Whales Crabeater Seals Leopard Seals Adelie Penguins Chinstrap Penguins Gentoo Penguins The top predators of the Antarctic Peninsula are seabirds and seals. Krill – Euphausiasuperba Phytoplankton Light E Food E TheSun Photosynthesis

  13. The Crabeater Seal is a Krill Specialist

  14. Crabeater seals are krill specialists. Their entire “terrestrial” existence is spent on ice floes, not land.

  15. South North Gentoos Chinstraps Adelies The distribution of Chinstrap Penguins is intermediate between the Gentoo Penguin in the north and the Adelie Penguin in the south.

  16. Adelie Penguins Adelie penguins breed on shores around the Antarctic continent, South Shetland, South Orkney, and South Sandwich Islands. At sea they are usually found near the edge of the shelf-ice to the northern extent of the pack-ice. They are a krill dependant species.

  17. On the western side of the Antarctic Peninsula the ACC upwells and floods onto the continental shelf. This brings nutrients to the coastal waters leading to blooms of diatoms that krill feel on. Upwelling

  18. Some of the larval stages of krill feed on algae that grow on the lower surface of sea ice. One of the factors that determines the annual abundance of krill is the extent of sea ice in winter. Along the northern half of the Antarctic Peninsula there has been an 80% decline in krill abundance in the past 30 years attributed to a loss of sea ice.

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