Walker Lab 12

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Arapahoe Community College *

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Astronomy

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Dec 6, 2023

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Arapahoe Community College Astronomy 1110 Lab 12 A STRONOMY 1110 L AB 12: G REENHOUSE E FFECT Procedure 1. You will be using the PhET Simulation The Greenhouse Effect. This simulation may take a minute or two to open, so please be patient. After it opens, click the play button to start the simulation. Run the Simulation in the Greenhouse Effect Tab, keep all the default settings. Then vary each of the settings to see how this changes the system. Give the simulation time to settle after you make a change. Page 1

Arapahoe Community College Astronomy 1110 Lab 12 A. What do the yellow dots that move downward in the simulation represent? The yellow dots in the simulation represent sunlight photons. B. What do the red dots in the simulation represent? Do all the red dots all move upwards? Why or why not? The red dots represent infrared photons and not all of the red dots move upwards. Some are trapped in by the clouds and some are trapped in by green house gases. Page 2

Arapahoe Community College Astronomy 1110 Lab 12 C. Reset the sim and select “1750” and let the temperature rise to equilibrium (about 2 minutes). How did the temperatures during the 1750’s differ from today? What was different about the atmospheric composition that could cause this? The temperatures during the 1750s were about 5 degrees cooler than the temperatures today. There was a smaller presence methane, carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide than compared to today. D. Reset the sim and select “ice age” and let the temperature rise to equilibrium. How did the temperatures during the Ice Age differ from today? What was different about the atmospheric composition that could cause this? The temperatures during the Ice Age were almost 30 degrees cooler than today. The temperatures were ranging between 30-40 degrees F. The largest changes in the atmosphere is there is about 200 less ppm of carbon dioxide than today. There was 1.5ppm less of methane and .1ppm less nitrous oxide than today. E. Now add a few clouds. What is the role of clouds in the planet’s temperature? Think about clouds in your everyday life as well, both during the day and at night. Clouds block photons of infrared and sunlight. These clouds keep the temperature of the planet cooler. 2. Run the Simulation in the Photon Absorption Tab, keep all the default settings. Then vary each of the settings to see how this changes the system. Give the simulation time to settle after you make a change. A. Do all the photons pass through a methane molecule? Explain. Not all infrared photons pass through a methane molecule. The methane molecule traps and diverts the path of some of the infrared photons. B. When a photon gets absorbed, what happens to the methane molecule next? The methane molecule shakes and creates a new photon. C. When a new photon is emitted from the methane molecule, is it always sent in the same direction? The new photon is typically not sent in the same direction it is sent in a random direction. D. Which molecules absorb visible light? What molecules absorb infrared light? Page 3

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Arapahoe Community College Astronomy 1110 Lab 12 None of the molecules absorb visible light but methane, carbon dioxide and water absorb infrared light. E. Based on your answers to part D, what gases contribute to the greenhouse effect in our atmosphere? Methane and Carbon dioxide and water vapor contribute to the greenhouse effect in our atmosphere. F. What would happen to Earth if there was no greenhouse effect? If there was no greenhouse effect on Earth then there would be very cold temperatures. 3. The terms “global warming,” “greenhouse effect,” and “climate change” get used interchangeable often. Do a bit of research on each of these terms. To start go to the NASA Global Climate change website, and then branch out on your own. Be careful when using sources, many sources out there are not valid and/or reliable. Cite all of your sources. A. Define “global warming,” “greenhouse effect,” and “climate change.” Global warming is the changing average air temperatures measured near the Earth. (Britannica) Greenhouse effect is the increasing warmth of the Earth’s surface and troposphere which is being caused by methane, water vapor, and carbon dioxide among other gases. (Britannica) Climate change describes the change in global, regional and local weather patterns. (NASA) B. Do these three terms mean the same thing? Why have three separate terms? When is each useful? Record your answers to the questions as 3B in your lab report. These three terms can be intertwined in a conversation about green house gases but they mean slightly different things. Global warming is concerned with the air temperatures near earth, Greenhouse effect focuses on greenhouse gas emissions and climate change is focused on weather patterns. 4. How the lessons learned in this lab relate to Mars and Venus? A. Do Mars and Venus each have a greenhouse effect? How do you know? If so, how is each similar or different to Earth’s and/or each other’s? Mars and Venus both have a greenhouse effect due to the fact that some heat is generated near the surface. Mars has less of an atmosphere and less Page 4

Arapahoe Community College Astronomy 1110 Lab 12 greenhouse gases than the Earth. Venus has a larger presence of greenhouse gases and its temperatures are much higher than Earth’s. B. Why do you believe there is still a debate about climate change even though there is a scientific consensus? I believe there is still a debate because fossil fuels are essential to every day life and are good for the economy therefore there are debates about the scientific effect of greenhouse gas emissions compared to the economic effect of the things that cause an increased level of greenhouse gasses. 5. How does Earth’s Atmosphere compare to say Jupiter and Saturn’s atmospheres? (Speak to each Jupiter and Saturn, their layers, storms, etc. Supply any sources used to answer.) The Earth’s Atmosphere contains larger amounts of greenhouse gases than Jupiter and Saturn’s atmospheres. Jupiter has layers of clouds with ammonia ice, ammonium hydrosulfide and water ice. There are large storms that in Jupiter and high winds that result in the bands around Jupiter. Saturn experiences higher winds than Jupiter and contains clouds similar to Jupiter. Saturn and Jupiter have large amounts of hydrogen and helium. Conclusion: After this lab, one should be able to see the effect of larger amounts of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere. Methane, carbon dioxide and water vapor trap infrared photons in the atmosphere and raise the temperatures near the surface of the Earth. Planets like Venus have an uncontrollable amount of greenhouse gases that create an unlivable environment. One should be more aware of the emissions on Earth created by humans to avoid extreme temperature rises. (Giant Planets) Sources: NASA. (2023). Climate change: Vital signs of the planet . Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet; NASA. https://climate.nasa.gov/ NASA. (2023). What Is Climate Change? Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet; NASA. https://climate.nasa.gov/what-is-climate-change/ The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. (2018). greenhouse effect. In Encyclopædia Britannica . https://www.britannica.com/science/greenhouse-effect Mann, M. E. (2019). global warming | Definition, Causes, & Effects. In Encyclopædia Britannica . https://www.britannica.com/science/global-warming Giant Planets: Atmospheres . (n.d.). Lasp.colorado.edu. https://lasp.colorado.edu/outerplanets/giantplanets_atmospheres.php Page 5

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