Climate Change terms starting with A

111 terms

Abiotic Absence of living organisms.
Ablation (a-BLAY-shun) In medicine, the removal or destruction of a body part or tissue or its function.
abrupt climate change a change in the climate (for example, temperature or precipitation) that takes place over a few decades or less, persists for at least a few decades, and…
absolute dating the process of determining a specific, numerical age for an old material. This may be accomplished using one of a variety of methods, including…
Absolute Humidity The ratio of the mass of water vapor to the volume occupied by a mixture of water vapor and dry air.
Absolutely Stable Air An atmospheric condition that exists when the environmental lapse rate is less than the moist adiabatic lapse rate.
Absolutely Unstable Air An atmospheric condition that exists when the environmental lapse rate is greater than the dry adiabatic lapse rate.
Absorption (ub-SORP-shun) The process of taking nutrients from the digestive system into the blood so they can be used in the body.
Absorption of radiation The uptake of radiation by a solid body, liquid or gas. The absorbed energy may be transferred or re-emitted. See radiation.
absorptivity In a solar thermal system, the ratio of solar energy striking the absorber that is absorbed by the absorber to that of solar energy striking a black body…
Accretion Process of growth whereby material is added to the outside of nonliving matter.
accumulation used in paleoclimatology to describe the deposition of sediment or other material over time.
Accuracy Department of Defense parlance for the notion that information has been maintained and transferred in such a way as to be inviolate (the information has…
Acid deposition A comprehensive term for the various ways acidic compounds precipitate from the atmosphere and deposit onto surfaces.
Acid Precipitation Precipitation, such as rain, snow or sleet, containing relatively high concentrations of acid-forming chemicals that have been released into the…
Acid Rain A term used to describe precipitation that has become acidic (low pH) due to the emission of sulfur oxides from fossil fuel burning power plants.
Acid Solution Any water solution that has more hydrogen ions (H+) than hydroxide ions (OH-); any water solution with a pH less than 7. See basic solution.
Acidic The condition of water or soil which contains a sufficient amount of acid substances to lower the pH below 7.0.
actual evapotranspiration The rate of water lost from vegetation and soil, ordinarily at a slower rate than the potential rate.
Adaptation Adjustment of a population to changes in environment over generations, associated (at least in part) with genetic changes resulting from selection imposed…
Adiabat A line on a thermodynamic chart relating the pressure and temperature of a substance (such as air) that is undergoing a transformation in which no heat is…
Adiabatic Lapse Rate The rate of decrease of temperature experienced by a parcel of air when it is lifted in the atmosphere under the restriction that it cannot exchange heat…
Adiabatic Process A process which occurs with no exchange of heat between a system and its environment.
Advection (Abbrev. ADVCTN)- Transport of an atmospheric property by the wind.
Advection Fog A fog that forms when warm air flows over a cold surface and cools from below until saturation is reached.
advective tendency The large-scale advective tendency of temperature and moisture used to force SCMs and CSRMs, derived from constrained variational analysis.
Aerobic In biochemistry, reactions that need oxygen to happen or happen when oxygen is present.
Aerosol A system of colloidal particles dispersed in a gas, such as smoke or fog.
aerosol absorption The process in which radiation energy is retained by aerosols.
aerosol Angstrom coefficient Often incorrectly used synonymously with "aerosol Angstrom exponent", but should instead refer to the aerosol optical depth at the reference wavelength (1…
aerosol Angstrom exponent The exponent of the inverse power-law that approximates the wavelength dependence of aerosol optical depth.
aerosol concentration Number of aerosols per unit volume.
aerosol extinction The removal of radiant energy from an incident beam by the process of aerosol absorption and/or scattering.
aerosol loading An increase in aerosol concentration.
aerosol optical properties The optical properties of aerosols, including asymmetry factor, phase-function, single-scattering albedo, refractive index, and backscatter fraction.
aerosol particle size Linear size (e.g. radius or diameter) of an aerosol particle.
aerosol scattering The scattering of radiative energy by processes at the aerosol and molecular level.
aerovane A device that resembles a wind vane with a propeller at one end. It is used to indicate wind speed and direction.
Afforestation Planting of new forests on lands that historically have not contained forests.
Afforestations Planting of new forests on lands that have not been recently forested.
Air carrier An operator (e.g., airline) in the commercial system of air transportation consisting of aircraft that hold certificates of, Public Convenience and…
air density The mass per unit volume of air; about 1.275 kilometer per cubic meter at 0° C and 1000 millibars.
Air Mass A body of air covering a relatively wide area and exhibiting horizontally uniform properties.
Air pollutant Any substance in the air which could, if in high enough concentration, harm humans, other animals, vegetation, or material.
Air Pollution The presence of contaminants in the air in concentrations that prevent the normal dispersive ability of the air, and that interfere with biological…
Air Pressure Specifically the air pressure of the tires. Changing the air pressure in the tires is a way to alter the setup and handling of a NASCAR race car.
Air temperature Air temperature (Also termed surface temperature in meteorology). The ambient temperature indicated by a thermometer exposed to the air but sheltered from…
Albedo The ratio of light reflected by a surface to the light falling on it.
Alberta Low Alberta Low A low centered on the eastern slope of the Canadian Rockies in the province of Alberta, Canada.
Aleutian Low A semi-permanent, subpolar area of low pressure located in the Gulf of Alaska near the Aleutian Islands.
Alkalinity The total concentration of bases in water.
Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) The group of Pacific and Caribbean nations who call for relatively fast action by developed nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Alternative Energy Energy derived from nontraditional sources (e.g., compressed natural gas, solar, hydroelectric, wind).
Altimeter An instrument that indicates the altitude of an object above a fixed level. Pressure altimeters use an aneroid barometer with a scale graduated in…
Altocumulus A cloud of a class characterized by globular masses or rolls in layers or patches, the individual elements being larger and darker than those of…
Altostratus A cloud of a class characterized by a generally uniform gray sheet or layer, lighter in color than nimbostratus and darker than cirrostratus.
Ambient Air The air external to a building or device.
Anaerobic An environment or condition in which molecular oxygen is not available for chemical, physical or biological processes.
Anaerobic decomposition The breakdown of molecules into simpler molecules or atoms by microorganisms that can survive in the partial or complete absence of oxygen.
Anaerobic Lagoon A holding pond for livestock manure that is designed to anaerobically stabilize manure, and may be designed to capture biogas, with the use of an…
Anaerobic organism An organism that does not need oxygen to stay alive. See anaerobic.
analog In chemistry, a substance that is similar, but not identical, to another.
Analysis A process in which anything complex is separated into simple or less complex parts.
Anemometer An instrument for measuring the force or velocity of wind; a wind gauge.
Anemorumbograph Anemorumbograph Russian anemograph (recording anemometer) which is equipped with a device to record the wind direction in addition to wind speed.
Anemorumbometer Anemorumbometer Russian anemometer combined with a vane to determine the wind direction.
Aneroid Barometer An instrument for measuring atmospheric pressure in which a needle, attached to the top of an evacuated box, is deflected as changes in atmospheric…
Annex I Countries/Parties Group of countries included in Annex I (as amended in 1998) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, including all the developed…
Annex I Parties Industrialized countries that, as parties to the Framework Convention on Climate Change, have pledged to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by the year…
anomalies The departures of temperature, precipitation, or other weather elements from long-term averages.
Anomaly Something that is out of the ordinary. For example if in a set of 1000 two winged, two legged, one headed, (essentially normal) chickens, one of them had…
Antarctic "Ozone Hole" Refers to the seasonal depletion of stratospheric ozone in a large area over Antarctica. See ozone, ozone layer.
Anthracite A hard, black, lustrous coal containing a high percentage of fixed carbon and a low percentage of volatile matter. Often referred to as hard coal.
Anthropogenic Referring to alterations in the environment due to the presence or activities of humans.
Anticyclone A large-scale circulation of winds around a central region of high atmospheric pressure, clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere, counterclockwise in the…
Anticyclonic circulation Anticyclonic circulation System of air movements (atmospheric circulation) associated with an anticyclone, which is clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere…
Arable land Land which when farmed in adequate size units for the prevailing climatic and economic setting, and provided with the essential on-farm improvements of…
Arctic The region within the Arctic Circle, or, loosely, northern regions in general, characterized by very low temperatures.
arctic air A very cold and dry air mass that forms primarily in winter and the northern interior of North America.
Arctic air mass Arctic air mass Mass of very cold air in the Arctic regions which invades lower latitudes at irregular intervals.
Arctic Circle Arctic Circle The line of latitude 66° 32' N (often taken as 66.5° N). Along this line the Sun does not set on the day of the summer solstice, and does…
Arctic front The boundary or front separating deep, cold arctic air from shallower, relatively less cold polar air.
Arctic haze Arctic haze Haze in Arctic regions which reduces horizontal and slant visibility and which may extend to a height of about 10 km.
Arctic high Arctic high A weak high which appears over the Arctic Basin during late spring, summer and early autumn, one of the centers of action in the atmosphere.
Arctic mist Arctic mist A mist of ice crystals; a very light ice fog.
Arctic Oscillation (abbrev. AO)- The Arctic Oscillation is a pattern in which atmospheric pressure at polar and middle latitudes fluctuates between negative and positive…
Arctic Sea Smoke Steam fog, but often specifically applied to steam fog rising from small open water within sea ice.
Arid A region that receives too little water to support agriculture without irrigation. Less than ten inches of rainfall a year is typically considered arid.
ARM Climate Research Facility (ACRF) A U.S. Department of Energy designated national user facility that provides a unique asset for the study of global change to the broader national and…
ARM Mobile Facility See Mobile Facility.
aromatic (A-ruh-MA-tik) Having an odor, which often is pleasant or spicy.
ARRA American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (can also be shortened to \"Recovery Act\").
Ash The non-combustible residue of a combusted substance composed primarily of alkali and metal oxides.
Asphalt A dark-brown-to-black cement-like material containing bitumen as the predominant constituent. It is obtained by petroleum processing.
Atmosphere The gaseous envelope surrounding the Earth, which consists almost entirely of nitrogen (78.1% volume mixing ratio) and oxygen (20.
Atmospheric circulation Atmospheric circulation System of atmospheric motions over the Earth on the scale of the whole globe (general atmospheric circulation), or over a certain…
Atmospheric Lifetime The lifetime of a greenhouse gas refers to the approximate amount of time it would take for the anthropogenic increment to an atmospheric pollutant…
atmospheric moisture The moisture content of the air as indicated by several measurements including relative humidity, specific humidity, dewpoint, vapor pressure, water vapor…
Atmospheric phenomenon Atmospheric phenomenon (phenomena) As commonly used in weather observing practice, an observable occurrence of particular physical significance within the…
Atmospheric Pressure The pressure of the air at sea level; one standard atmosphere at zero degrees centigrade is equal to 14.695 pounds per square inch (1.