Book 2.indb - US Climate Change Science Program

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The U.S. Climate Change Science ProgramGreenhouse gases (GHG) – Greenhouse gases are thosegaseous constituents of the atmosphere, both natural andanthropogenic, that absorb and emit radiation at specificwavelengths within the spectrum of thermal infrared radiationemitted by the Earth’s surface, the atmosphere itself,and by clouds. This property causes the greenhouse effect.Water vapor (H 2 O), carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), nitrous oxide(N 2 O), methane (CH 4 ), and ozone (O 3 ) are the primarygreenhouse gases in the Earth’s atmosphere. Moreover,there are a number of entirely human-made greenhousegases in the atmosphere, such as the halocarbons and otherchlorine- and bromine-containing substances, dealt withunder the Montreal Protocol. Beside CO 2 , N 2 O, and CH 4 ,the Kyoto Protocol deals with the greenhouse gases sulfurhexafluoride (SF 6 ), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), and perfluorocarbons(PFCs).Holocene Epoch – The geological epoch extending backapproximately 11,500 years from the present.Ice sheet – Glaciers of near-continental extent and of whichthere are at present two, the Antarctic Ice Sheet and theGreenland Ice Sheet.La Niña – The cold phase of the El Niño Southern Oscillation(ENSO).Mass Balance – The net glacier and ice-sheet annual gainor loss of ice/snow.Medieval Warm Period – An interval between A.D. 900and A.D. 1300 in which some Northern Hemisphere regionswere warmer than during the Little Ice Age that followed.Megadrought – Prolonged (multi-decadal) droughts suchas those documented for the Medieval Period.Methane – Methane (CH 4 ) is the second most importantgreenhouse gas that humans directly influence, carbondioxide (CO 2 ) being first.Methane hydrate – A solid in which methane molecules aretrapped in a lattice of water molecules. On Earth, methanehydrate forms under high pressure–low temperature conditionsin the presence of sufficient methane.Paleoclimate – Climate during periods prior to the developmentof measuring instruments, including historic andgeologic time, for which only proxy climate records areavailable.Glossary, Acronyms, and AbbreviationsPermafrost – Ground (soil or rock and included ice andorganic material) that remains at or below 0 °C for at least2 consecutive years.Proxy – A local record (e.g., pollen, tree rings) that isinterpreted, using physical and biophysical principles, torepresent some combination of climate-related variationsback in time. Climate-related data derived in this way arereferred to as proxy data. Examples of proxies include pollenanalysis, tree ring records, characteristics of corals, andvarious data derived from ice cores.Radiative forcing – A change in the net radiation at thetop of the troposphere caused by a change in the solar radiation,the infrared radiation, or other changes that affectthe radiation energy absorbed by the surface (e.g., changesin surface reflection properties), resulting in a radiationimbalance. A positive radiative forcing tends to warm thesurface on average, whereas a negative radiative forcingtends to cool it. Changes in GHG concentrations representa radiative forcing through their absorption and emissionof infrared radiation.Sea level change – Sea level can change, both globally andlocally, due to (i) changes in the shape of the ocean basins,(ii) changes in the total mass of water, and (iii) changes inwater density.Sea surface temperature (SST) – The temperature in thetop few meters of the ocean, measured by ships, buoys,and drifters.Sink – Any process, activity, or mechanism that removes agreenhouse gas, an aerosol, or a precursor of a greenhousegas or aerosol from the atmosphere.Thermohaline circulation (THC) – Currents driven byfluxes of heat and fresh water across the sea surface andsubsequent interior mixing of heat and salt. The termsAtlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) andThermohaline Circulation are often used interchangeablybut have distinctly different meanings. The AMOC, byitself, does not include any information on what drives thecirculation (see AMOC definition above). In contrast, THCimplies a specific driving mechanism related to creation anddestruction of buoyancy.Tropopause – That area of the atmosphere between thetroposphere and the stratosphere.242
Abrupt Climate ChangeACRONYMSAABWAntarctic Bottom WaterACCAntarctic Circumpolar CurrentAGCMAtmospheric General CirculationModelALTactive layer thicknessAMOAtlantic Multidecadal OscillationAMOCAtlantic Meridional OverturningCirculationAOGCM Atmosphere-Ocean GeneralCirculation ModelAOVGCM Atmosphere-Ocean-VegetationGeneral Circulation ModelAR4Fourth Assessment Report, IPCCATMAirborne laser altimetryAVGCM Atmosphere-Vegetation GeneralCirculation ModelBSRbottom-simulating reflectorCCDcarbonate compensation depthCCSMCommunity Climate System ModelCCSPClimate Change Science ProgramCLIVAR Climate Variability and PredictabilityCOGAClimatological Ocean GlobalAtmosphereCOHMAP Cooperative Holocene MappingProjectD/HIsotopic ratio of deuterium tohydrogenD-ODansgaard-OeschgerDWFdeep water formationEDGAR Emission Database for GlobalAtmospheric ResearchEGVMEquilibrium Global Vegetation ModelEMICEarth System Model of IntermediateComplexityENSOEl Niño Southern OscillationEPICAEuropean Project for Ice Coringin AntarcticaESRLEarth System Research LaboratoryGCMGeneral Circulation ModelGFDLGeophysical Fluid DynamicsLaboratoryGHCNGlobal Historical ClimatologyNetworkGHGgreenhouse gasesGIAglacial-isostatic adjustmentGINGreenland-Iceland-NorwegianGISP2 Greenland Ice Sheet Project 2GNAIW Glacial North Atlantic IntermediateWaterGOGAGlobal Ocean Global AtmosphereGRACE Gravity Recovery and ClimateExperimentGRIPGSOPHSZICEsatInSARIPCCIRISOMIPITCZLGMLIGLISLSWmasconMCAMDRMISMLMOCMWPNADANADWNAMNAONCAR CCM3NOAANRCPDBPDOPDSIP-EPETMPMIPPOGAPOGA-MLRCMRFRSLSAPGreenland Ice Core ProjectGlobal Synthesis and ObservationsPanelHydrate stability zoneIce, Cloud, and Land ElevationSatelliteInterferometric Synthetic ApertureRadarIntergovernmental Panel on ClimateChangeinfraredIce Shelf–Ocean Model IntercomparisonProjectIntertropical Convergence ZoneLast Glacial Maximumlast interglaciation periodLaurentide Ice SheetLabrador Sea watermass concentrationMedieval Climate Anomalymain development regionMarine Isotope Stagemixed layerMeridional Overturning CirculationMedieval Warm Period; meltwaterpulseNorth American Drought AtlasNorth Atlantic Deep WaterNorthern Annular ModeNorth Atlantic OscillationNational Center for AtmosphericResearch Community ClimateSystem Model 3National Oceanic and AtmosphericAdministrationNational Research CouncilPee Dee BelemnitePacific Decadal OscillationPalmer Drought Severity IndexPrecipitation minusevapotranspirationPaleocene-Eocene ThermalMaximumPaleoclimate ModelingIntercomparison ProjectPacific Ocean Global AtmospherePacific Ocean Global AtmosphereMixed Layer OceanRegional Climate Modelradiative forcingrelative sea levelSynthesis and Assessment Product243
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TABLE OF CONTENTSAuthor Team for th
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The U.S. Climate Change Science Pro
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PREFACEReport Motivation and Guidan
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1CHAPTERAbrupt Climate ChangeIntrod
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Abrupt Climate Change-35Arctic temp
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Abrupt Climate ChangeFigure 1.2. Po
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Abrupt Climate Changewell below sea
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Abrupt Climate Changeheterogeneous
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Abrupt Climate Changeapart from dro
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Abrupt Climate Change6. Abrupt Chan
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Abrupt Climate Changeintermediate c
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Abrupt Climate Changeper square met
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Abrupt Climate Changeis the norther
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Abrupt Climate ChangeRegardless how
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Abrupt Climate Changecentrations, a
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Abrupt Climate ChangeBox 2.1. Glaci
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Abrupt Climate Changetime. Degree-d
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Abrupt Climate Changetion, and accu
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Abrupt Climate ChangeBox 2.2. Mass
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Abrupt Climate Changeof the glacier
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Abrupt Climate ChangeFigure 2.6. Ra
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Abrupt Climate Changewater) or, mor
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Abrupt Climate ChangeFigure 2.7. Re
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Abrupt Climate Changeresults in a l
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Abrupt Climate Changeis not providi
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Abrupt Climate Changemeasurements c
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Abrupt Climate Changemore than 10,0
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Abrupt Climate Changeocean models h
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Abrupt Climate Changeto atmosphere-
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3CHAPTERHydrological Variability an
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Abrupt Climate Change• The integr
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Abrupt Climate Changethe soil (King
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Abrupt Climate Changeon (Kaplan et
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Abrupt Climate Changeorbital-time-s
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Abrupt Climate ChangeFigure 3.4. (t
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Abrupt Climate Changemodels forced
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Abrupt Climate ChangeBox 3.2. Waves
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Abrupt Climate Changebecause (1) th
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Abrupt Climate ChangeHarrison et al
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Abrupt Climate Changethat even the
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Abrupt Climate Changethat seen afte
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Abrupt Climate Changeentire period
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Abrupt Climate Changelong-lived gre
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Abrupt Climate Changeplanetary-scal
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Abrupt Climate ChangeBox 3.3. Paleo
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Abrupt Climate Changerelated to the
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Abrupt Climate Changeinto the North
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Abrupt Climate ChangeThe summertime
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Abrupt Climate Change(Anderson et a
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Abrupt Climate ChangeHere the model
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Abrupt Climate Changetropical tropo
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Abrupt Climate Changefunctions; Koc
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Abrupt Climate Changechanges than t
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Book 2.indb - US Climate Change Science Program

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