The Climate Revealed

About this book

A highly authoritative, yet accessible guide to the world's climate, its effects and its future. Lively illuminating text from an expert author combines with specially commissioned illustrations and colour photographs to make complex ideas easy to understand. Feature articles explore dramatic or controversial aspects of the climate – from the explosive outpourings of volcanoes to the disasters wreaked by hurricanes. The author looks to the future to present all sides of the debate over climate change and its possible implications for humanity as well as to the past to reveal how the climate has changed over the centuries.

Contents

Introduction
How to use this book

Part I. Climate in Motion:
1. The Earth in space
2. The atmosphere in motion
3. Oceans and currents
4. Water cycle and biosphere
5. Clouds
6. The impact of volcanoes
7. The sunspot cycle?
8. Atmosphere electricity
9. The Gaia principle

Part II. Climate Records:
10. Current measurement system
11. Weather satellites
12. Weather forecasting
13. Historical records
14. Proxy records
15. Ice ages
16. Continental drift
17. Asteroid impact

Part III. Polar Regions:
18. Climate of the Arctic
19. Climate of Antarctica
20. Aurorae
21. The great ice sheets
22. Coping with extreme cold
23. The ozone hole
24. Sea ice
25. Ice cores

Part IV. Tundra and Taiga:
26. Climate of tundra and taiga
27. A climate of extremes
28. Tundra flora and fauna
29. The northern forests
30. Snow cover
31. Permafrost

Part V. Mountain Regions:
32. Climate of the mountains
33. Avalanches
34. Mountain vegetation
35. Living in the mountains
36. The threat of tourism
37. Mountain glaciers

Part VI. Mediterranean Regions:
38. Climate of the Mediterranean
39. Mediterranean winds
40. Mediterranean vegetation
41. The Mediterranean diet
42. A history of deforestation

Part VII. Temperate Regions:
43. Climate of temperate regions
44. Depressions and anticyclones
45. Agriculture and farming
46. The impact of urbanization
47. Unusual spells of weather
48. Ocean circulation patterns
49. The Little Ice Age

Part VIII. The Praries:
50. Climate of prairies and steppes
51. Thunderstorms
52. Tornadoes
53. Plant hardiness
54. Dust Bowl years

Part IX. The Tropics:
55. Climate of the tropics
56. The monsoon
57. Tropical storms and hurricanes
58. The biodiversity of life
59. Destruction of the rainforests
60. El Nino
61. Cycles and long-term forecasts

Part X. Desert Regions:
62. Climate of the deserts
63. Albedo and radiative effects
64. Renewable energy
65. Desert flora and fauna
66. Human response to heat
67. The Sahel drought
68. Are the deserts expanding?
69. Dust and airborne particulates

Part XI. The Future:
70. Modelling the climate
71. Monitoring for the future
72. The cost of climate change
73. Future food production
74. Climate and health
75. Weather modification
76. Sea-level rise
77. The next 100 years

Glossary
Index
Acknowledgements

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