文档介绍:GL BAL
WARMING
Climate
Systems
GL BAL
WARMING
Climate
Systems
Interactive Forces
of Global Warming
Julie Kerr Casper, .
CLIMATE SYSTEMS: Interactive Forces of Global Warming
Copyright © 2009 by Julie Kerr Casper, .
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means,
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Facts On File, Inc.
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Library of Congress-in-Publication Data
Casper, Julie Kerr.
Climate systems : interactive forces of global warming / Julie Kerr Casper.
p. cm.—(Global warming)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8160-7260-6 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-4381-2607-4 (e-book)
1. Climatology—Popular works. 2. Global warming—Popular works. I. Title.
2009
—dc22 2008040921
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Text design by Erik Lindstrom
Illustrations by Jeremy Eagle and Melissa Ericksen
Photo research by the author
Printed in the United States of America
Bang FOF 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Contents
Preface viii
Acknowledgments xiii
Introduction xv
1 Elements of the Climate System 1
Climate and Weather 2
Federal Agencies Studying Climate 5
The Concept of a Global System 5
Climate Variability and Cycles 6
What Exactly Is Global Warming? 7
Global Warming: Myths and Facts 8
The Atmosphere’s Structure 10
The Greenhouse Effect and Global Warming 14
The Mauna Loa Observatory 15
2 The Carb