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Climate Change Flashcards
Free Geography Cards for GCSE Revision
From the enhanced greenhouse effect to international climate agreements, these free Geography flashcards give you everything you need to tackle the climate change topic in your GCSE exams.
Question
What is the greenhouse effect?
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Answer
Solar radiation heats Earth's surface; re-emitted infrared radiation is absorbed by greenhouse gases and re-radiated, warming the atmosphere.
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Question
Name three greenhouse gases.
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Answer
Carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), and water vapour (H₂O).
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Question
What is the difference between the natural and enhanced greenhouse effect?
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Answer
The natural greenhouse effect keeps Earth habitable; the enhanced effect is caused by human activity adding extra greenhouse gases, causing additional warming.
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Question
What evidence shows that global temperatures are rising?
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Answer
Temperature records, retreating glaciers, rising sea levels, earlier seasonal events (e.g. earlier blossom), and ice core data.
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Question
What do ice cores tell us about past climates?
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Answer
Trapped air bubbles preserve ancient atmospheric gas compositions, showing CO₂ and temperature levels over hundreds of thousands of years.
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Question
What is the difference between weather and climate?
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Answer
Weather is short-term atmospheric conditions at a specific place; climate is the average weather of an area over 30+ years.
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Question
What are natural causes of climate change?
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Answer
Milankovitch cycles (changes in Earth's orbit/tilt), volcanic eruptions, solar output variation.
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Question
What are the main human causes of climate change?
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Answer
Burning fossil fuels, deforestation, agriculture (methane from livestock and rice paddies), and industrial processes.
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Question
What is a positive feedback loop in climate science?
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Answer
A process where warming triggers further warming, e.g. melting Arctic ice reduces albedo → more solar absorption → more warming.
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Question
What is albedo?
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Answer
The proportion of solar radiation reflected by a surface — ice has high albedo; oceans and dark land have low albedo.
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