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Mohamed Ibrahim Geology 103 T Th, 12PM Homework Assignment: Essea Atmosphere Q&A 1. The physical manifestations of change in the climate are expected to be what' * Higher temperatures and heat waves * Water uncertainty: drought, wildfire, extreme storm and flooding * Sea level rise * http://oaklandlocal.com/people/susan 2. How Will Climate Change Affect Alameda County and the Bay Area' * While climate change is a global problem influenced by an array of interrelated factors, climate change is also a local problem with serious impacts foreseen for California and the Bay Area. * Impacts on plants and vegetation * Public health impact: Warming temperatures and increased precipitation can also encourage mosquito-breeding, thus engendering diseases that come with mosquitoes, such as the West Nile Virus, a disease of growing concern in our region * Natural disasters: Climate models predict a 4ºF temperature increase in the next 20 to 40 years, with an increase in the number of long dry spells, as well as a 20-30% increase in precipitation in the spring and fall. http://stopwaste.org/home/index.asp'page=970 3. What is like Bay Area climate condition during winter, spring and summer' * The San Francisco Bay Area climate is characterized by moderately wet winters and dry summers. And for spring, it is mix wet, cold and windy. * Winter rains (December through March) account for about 75 percent of the average annual rainfall; * About 90 percent of the annual total rainfall is received in the November-April period; and between 15 * June and 22 September, normal rainfall is typically less than 1/10 inch * http://hank.baaqmd.gov/dst/papers/bay_area_climate.pdf 4. Changes in sea level and precipitation patterns around the Bay Area could cause accelerated shoreline erosion. * The sea level is definitely rising, and it is jeopardizing rapidly growing coastal communities. * The potential of damage to infrastructure in coastal areas from sea-level rise will be tens of billions U.S Dollars * Bothe of Human life and Animal will be in danger, or even worse kill. http://www.global-greenhouse-warming.com/sea-level.html 5. How might the climate affect the variation of fresh water into the Bay throughout the year' * San Francisco Bay is divided into several sub-bays. Water from the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers flows into Delta region, then into Suisun Bay, San Pablo Bay, and finally into the Central Bay and out the Golden Gate. * When river flow is great, during winter and spring, fresh water can also flow into the South Bay. * During winter, the South Bay also receives small amounts of fresh water runoff from local streams that flow into the Bay. * During other times of the year, the South Bay receives little fresh water. The northern parts of the Bay receive less fresh water in the summer and fall, but some flow does continue. http://funnel.sfsu.edu/courses/geol103/labs/estuaries/partII.html 6. What are some of the major cause of San Bruno, and Santa Cruz wild fire' * Lightning - Wildfires caused due to lightning occur at a frequency of three to five per year. Since lightning is usually associated with rain, such wildfires do not spread over large areas. * Human Carelessness - Majority of the cases of wildfires occur due to human carelessness, especially while handling fireworks * Slash and Burn Farming - This common practice of farming refers to cutting and burning of woodlands and vegetation for clearing the land. Quite often, the slash-and-burn practice results in catastrophic wildfires. * Underground Coal Fires - Very often, underground coal fires cause wildfires. Underground coal fires are the slow and flameless forms of combustion, below the earth's surface. Such fires continue to burn for many years, resulting in the release of toxic fumes and destruction of vegetation and human property. http://www.climatechange.ca.gov/research/2008_assessment/index.html