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Copyright, ii
About the Authors, viii
Preface, ix
Chapter 1. Global Change, 1
Introduction, 1
Global Change on Short Time Scales, 3
A Closer Look: Are Hurricanes Getting Stronger with Time?, 9
A Closer Look: The Discovery of the Antarctic Ozone Hole, 12
Global Change on Long Time Scales, 13
Chapter 2. Daisyworld: An Introduction to Systems, 21
The Systems Approach, 21
Thinking Quantitatively: Stability of Positive Feedback Loops, 25
The Daisyworld Climate System, 26
Useful Concepts: Graphs and Graph Making, 28
External Forcing: The Response of Daisyworld to Increasing Solar Luminosity, 30
Chapter 3. Global Energy Balance: The Greenhouse Effect, 36
Introduction, 36
Electromagnetic Radiation, 37
Temperature Scales, 40
Blackbody Radiation, 41
Planetary Energy Balance, 43
A Closer Look: Planetary Energy Balance, 44
Atmospheric Composition and Structure, 44
Thinking Quantitatively: How the Greenhouse Effect Works: The One-Layer Atmosphere, 45
Physical Causes of the Greenhouse Effect, 48
Effect of Clouds on the Atmospheric Radiation Budget, 50
Introduction to Climate Modeling, 52
Climate Feedbacks, 53
Chapter 4. The Atmospheric Circulation System, 57
The Global Circulatory Subsystems, 57
The Atmospheric Circulation, 58
A Closer Look: The Relationships between Temperature, Pressure, and Volumes—The Ideal Gas Law, 59
A Closer Look: How Hurricanes (Tropical Cyclones) Work, 67
Global Distributions of Temperature and Rainfall, 70
Chapter 5. The Circulation of the Oceans, 84
Winds and Surface Currents, 84
A Closer Look: Vorticity, 90
A Closer Look: The 1982–1983 and 1997–1998 ENSO Events, 95
The Circulation of the Deep Ocean, 96
A Closer Look: The Salt Content of the Oceans and the Age of Earth, 97
Useful Concepts: Isotopes and Their Uses, 102
A Closer Look: Carbon-14—A Radioactive Clock, 103
Chapter 6. The Cryosphere, 108
Introduction, 108
River and Lake Ice, Seasonal Snow Cover, and Permafrost, 110
Glaciers and Ice Sheets, 113
Thinking Quantitatively: Movement of Glaciers, 115
Sea Ice and Climate, 117
Chapter 7. Circulation of the Solid Earth: Plate Tectonics, 122
Introduction, 122
Anatomy of Earth, 123
A Closer Look: The Principle of the Seismograph, 126
The Theory of Plate Tectonics, 130
Plates and Plate Boundaries, 135
A Closer Look: Deep-Sea Life at Mid-Ocean Ridge Vents, 139
The Physiology of the Solid Earth: What Drives Plate Tectonics?, 142
A Closer Look: Radiometric Age Dating of Geological Materials, 142
Recycling of the Lithosphere: The Rock Cycle, 144
Plate Tectonics through Earth History, 146
Chapter 8. Recycling of the Elements: Carbon and Nutrient Cycles, 149
Systems Approach to the Carbon Cycle, 149
Useful Concepts: The Concept of the Mole, 153
The Short-Term Organic Carbon Cycle, 154
A Closer Look: Oxygen Minimum Zone, 156
The Long-Term Organic Carbon Cycle, 159
The Inorganic Carbon Cycle, 162
Useful Concepts: pH, 164
The Carbonate–Silicate Geochemical Cycle, 168
A Closer Look: Biological Enhancement of Chemical Weathering, 169
Links between the Organic and Inorganic Carbon Cycle, 170
Phosphorus and Nitrogen Cycles, 170
Chapter 9. Focus on the Biota: Metabolism, Ecosystems, and Biodiversity, 176
Life on Earth, 176
Structure of the Biosphere, 178
Ecosystems, 178
A Closer Look: Physiological versus Ecological Optima for Growth, 181
Biodiversity, 186
Diversity of Interactions, 187
Chapter 10. Origin of Earth and of Life, 190
Introduction, 190
A Closer Look: Determining the Age of Earth, 191
Formation of the Solar System, 192
A Closer Look: Main-Sequence Stars and the Hertzsprung–Russell Diagram, 195
Formation of the Atmosphere and Ocean, 197
A Closer Look: The Nice Model of Solar System Formation, 198
The Origin of Life, 199
A Closer Look: Oxidation of the Atmosphere by Escape of Hydrogen, 200
A Closer Look: Prebiotic O₂ Concentrations, 201
A Closer Look: What Does It Mean to Be Alive?, 202
A Closer Look: The Compounds of Life, 203
Chapter 11. Effect of Life on the Atmosphere: The Rise of Oxygen and Ozone, 210
Introduction, 210
Effect of Life on the Early Atmosphere, 211
The Rise of Oxygen, 214
Useful Concepts: Oxidation States of Iron, 217
A Closer Look: Mass-Independent Sulfur Isotope Ratios and What They Tell Us about the Rise of Atmospheric O₂, 220
The Rise of Ozone, 222
Variations in Atmospheric O₂ Over the Last 2 Billion Years, 223
Thinking Quantitatively: Carbon Isotopes and Organic Carbon Burial, 226
Modern Controls on Atmospheric O₂, 228
Chapter 12. Long-Term Climate Regulation, 233
Introduction, 233
The Faint Young Sun Paradox Revisited, 234
The Long-Term Climate Record, 240
Thinking Quantitatively: Energy Balance Modeling of the Snowball Earth, 246
A Closer Look: How Did Life Survive the Snowball Earth?, 247
Variations in Atmospheric CO₂ and Climate During the Phanerozoic, 248
Chapter 13. Biodiversity through Earth History, 255
The Fossil Record of Biodiversity, 255
Useful Concepts: Taxonomy, 257
The Cretaceous–Tertiary Mass Extinction, 261
A Closer Look: The K–T Strangelove Ocean, 267
Extraterrestrial Influences and Extinction, 268
Chapter 14. Pleistocene Glaciations, 272
Geologic Evidence of Pleistocene Glaciation, 273
Milankovitch Cycles, 276
Thinking Quantitatively: Kepler’s Laws, 277
Thinking Quantitatively: Effect of the Sun and Moon on Earth’s Obliquity and Precession, 279
Glacial Climate Feedbacks, 281
A Closer Look: Stochastic Resonance and Rapid Climate Change, 291
Chapter 15. Global Warming, Part 1: Recent and Future Climate, 295
Introduction, 295
Holocene Climate Change, 296
Carbon Reservoirs and Fluxes, 303
CO₂ Removal Processes and Time Scales, 306
A Closer Look: The Chemistry of CO₂ Uptake, 308
Projections of Future Atmospheric CO₂ Concentrations and Climate, 309
A Closer Look: Three-Dimensional General Circulation Models (GCMs), 314
A Closer Look: Long-Term CO₂ Projections, 317
Chapter 16. Global Warming, Part 2: Impacts, Adaptation, and Mitigation, 321
Introduction, 321
Changes in Sea Level, 322
Effects on Ecosystems, 325
Human Impacts of Global Warming, 326
Adapting to Global Warming, 327
Policies to Slow Global Warming, 329
Economic Consequences of Global Warming, 333
Chapter 17. Ozone Depletion, 340
Introduction, 340
Ultraviolet Radiation and Its Biological Effects, 340
Ozone Vertical Distribution and Column Depth, 343
The Chapman Mechanism, 344
Catalytic Cycles of Nitrogen, Chlorine, and Bromine, 346
Sources and Sinks of Ozone-Depleting Compounds, 347
The Antarctic Ozone Hole, 350
A Closer Look: How the Link between Freons and Ozone Depletion Was Discovered, 351
Evidence of Midlatitude Ozone Depletion, 354
Mechanisms for Halting Ozone Depletion, 356
Chapter 18. Human Threats to Biodiversity, 361
Introduction, 361
The Modern Extinction, 363
A Closer Look: Other Consequences of Tropical Deforestation, 367
Why We Should Care about Biodiversity, 373
Chapter 19. Climate Stability on Earth and Earthlike Planets, 379
Introduction, 379
Climate Evolution in the Distant Future, 380
Climate Evolution on Venus and Mars, 381
A Closer Look: A Geoengineering Solution to Earth’s Future Climate Problems, 382
Habitable Planets around Other Stars, 384
The Drake Equation, 387
Ensuring Our Long-Term Survival, 392
Appendix A, 395
Appendix B, 396
Appendix C, 397
Appendix D, 398
Glossary, 399
Index, 409
End Paper, EP-1

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