Climate Science

NRM 204 (2+1)

Introduction

Climate science is the scientific study of climate, scientifically defined as weather conditions averaged over a period of time.

What is Climate Science

Climate Science deals with following ideas
* Understands the essential principles of Earth’s climate system,
* knows how to assess scientifically credible information about climate,
* communicates about climate and climate change in a meaningful way, and
* is able to make informed and responsible decisions with regard to actions that may affect climate.

Why does Climate Science matter

  • During the 20th century, Earth’s globally averaged surface temperature rose by approximately 1.08 0F (0.6 0C). Additional warming of more than 0.25 0F (0.14 0C) has been measured since 2000. Though the total increase may seem small, it likely represents an extraordinarily rapid rate of change compared to changes in the previous 10,000 years.
  • Over the 21st century, climate scientists expect Earth’s temperature to continue increasing, very likely more than it did during the 20th century. Two anticipated results are rising global sea level and increasing frequency and intensity of heat waves, droughts, and floods. These changes will affect almost every aspect of human society, including economic prosperity, human and environmental health, and national security.
  • Scientific observations and climate model results indicate that human activities are now the primary cause of most of the ongoing increase in Earth’s globally averaged surface temperature.
  • Climate change will bring economic and environmental challenges as well as opportunities, and citizens who have an understanding of climate science will be better prepared to respond to both.
  • Society needs citizens who understand the climate system and know how to apply that knowledge in their careers and in their engagement as active members of their communities.
  • Climate change will continue to be a significant element of public discourse. Understanding the essential principles of climate science will enable all people to assess news stories and contribute to their everyday conversations as informed citizens.

Climate Science is Science, mathematics, and technology have a profound impact on our individual lives and our culture. They play a role in almost all human endeavors, and they affect how we relate to one another and the world around us. . . . Science Literacy enables us to make sense of real-world phenomena, informs our personal and social decisions, and serves as a foundation for a lifetime of learning.

Climate Science is an ideal interdisciplinary theme for lifelong learning about the scientific process and the ways in which humans affect and are affected by the Earth’s systems. This rich topic can be approached at many levels, from comparing the daily weather with long-term records to exploring abstract representations of climate in computer models to examining how climate change impacts human and ecosystem health. Learners of all ages can use data from their own experiments, data collected by satellites and other observation systems, or records from a range of physical, chemical, biological, geographical, social, economic, and historical sources to explore the impacts of climate and potential adaptation and mitigation strategies.

The composite or generally prevailing weather conditions of a region, as temperature, air pressure, humidity, precipitation, sunshine, cloudiness, and winds, throughout the year, averaged over a series of years. A region or area characterized by a given climate: to move to a warm climate.

Climate science is the study of relatively long-term weather conditions, typically spanning decades to centuries but extending to geological timescales. The discipline is primarily concerned with atmospheric properties – for example temperature and humidity – and patterns of circulation, as well as interactions with the ocean, the biosphere, and, over longer timescales, the geosphere.

Agrometeorology - Definition, Aim and Scope; Factors and elements of Weather and Climate

Meteorology

Meteorology is a Greek word “Meteoro” means ‘above the earth’s surface’ (atmosphere) and “logy” means ‘the study’.
Therefore Meteorology is the
* The science of atmosphere.
* Meteorology is the combination of both physics and atmosphere. This science utilizes the principles of Physics to study the behaviour of atmosphere/air. It is often quoted as the "Physics of atmosphere.
* A branch of physics of the earth dealing with physical processess in the atmosphere that produce weather.

Climatology

Climatology is the combination of two Greek words, “klima” and “logos”. ‘klima’ means ‘slope of earth’ and ‘logos’ means ‘study’. It is defined as the science dealing with the factors which determine and control the distribution of climate over the earth’s surface. Different factors that affecting the climate of a region are:
1. Latitude 2. Altitude 3. Land and water 4. Winds and air masses 5. Low and high pressure belts 6. Mountain barriers 7. Ocean currents 8. Extent of forests

These factors are called as climatic elements

Weather: Physical state of the atmosphere at a given place and given time
Climate: Long term regime of atmospheric variables of a given place or area

Weather elements

Any entity that controls the weather is called as element or factor of weather. There are various factors which individually on in combination control the weather, which are given below:
1. Solar radiation
2. Temperature
3. Air pressure
4. Wind
5. Sunshine
6. Humidity
7. Cloudiness
8. Precipitation, etc.
All these elements are highly variable and constitute the weather. Day to day or hour-to-hour changes in weather are mainly the result of variations in the amount, intensity and distribution over earth of weather elements listed above.

Agricultural meteorology:

  1. A branch of applied meteorology which investigates the physical conditions of the environment of growing plants or animal organisms.
  2. An applied science which deals with the relationship between weather/climatic conditions and agricultural production.
  3. An applied science which deals with the relationship between weather/climatic conditions and agricultural production.
  4. A science concerned with the application of meteorology to the measurement and analysis of the physical environment in agricultural systems. The word ‘Agrometeorology’ is the abbreviated form of agricultural meteorology.
  5. To study the interaction between meteorological and hydrological factors on the one hand and agriculture in the widest sense, including horticulture, animal husbandry and forestry on the other (WMO).
Meteorology Agricultural Meteorology
Branch of atmospheric physics Branch of applied meteorology or a branch of agriculture as it deals with agriculture
It is a weather science It is a product of agriculture and meteorology
It is a physical science It is a biophysical science
It aims at weather forecasting It aims at improving quantity and quality of crop production through meteorological skills
Weather service is the concern Agro advisory service to the farmers is the concern based on weather forecast
It is a linking science to the society It is a linking science to the farming community

Aim and Scopes of Agricultural Meteorology

Aim
Agricultural meteorology studies the interaction between physical environment on one hand and agriculture including dairy farming, poultry, bee keeping etc. on the other hand. So, the knowledge of physical environment can be used for increasing production of an agricultural farm. Crop production can be maximized by reducing the crop losses due to pest-disease attack, with the use of pest-weather interaction in timely management of pest and diseases. The ultimate aim of agricultural meteorology is to increase the crop production to maximum level with efficient use of available natural climatic resources and through weather based management of biotic and abiotic stress.

Scopes
1. It is concerned with interactions between meteorological and hydrological variables, on the one hand, and agriculture in the widest sense, including horticulture, animal husbandry and forestry, on the other.
2. To apply knowledge of atmospheric phenomena to practical agricultural use from soil layer of deepest plant roots to higher levels of atmosphere.
3. Exploitation of natural climatic resources and their modification to increase the efficiency of ecosystem.

Agricultural Meteorology is the application of meteorology in various disciplines of agriculture listed below:
1. Agronomy and Agroforestry
2. Plant pathology
3. Entomology and Nematology
4. Horticulture and Vegetables
5. Soil Science
6. Animal Husbandry
7. Water Management Engineering

Future Scope

  1. To study climatic resources of a given area for effective crop planning.
  2. To evolve weather based effective farm operations.
  3. To study crop weather relationships in all important crops and forecast crop yields based on agroclimatic and spectral indices using remote sensing.
  4. To study the relationship between weather factors and incidence of pests and diseases of various crops.
  5. To delineate climatic/agro ecological/agro climatic zones for defining agro climatic analogues so as to make effective and fast transfer of technology for improving crop yields.
  6. To prepare crop weather diagrams and crop weather calendars.
  7. To develop crop growth simulation models for assessing/obtaining potential yields in different agro climatic zones.
  8. To monitor agricultural droughts on crop-wise for effective drought management.
  9. To develop weather based agro advisories to sustain crop production utilizing various types of weather forecast and seasonal climate forecast.
  10. To investigate micro-climatic aspects of crop canopy in order to modify them for increased crop growth
  11. To study the influence of weather on soil environment on which the crop is grown
  12. To investigate the influence of weather in protected environment (eg. Glass houses) for improving their design aiming at increasing crop production.

Challenges and responsibilities of Agricultural Meteorology
1. To provide food for the population by applying all available meteorological knowledge in solving the problems of agricultural food production and distribution in cooperation with other scientists.
2. Quantitative information in the form of crop condition reports and yield prospects is essential for planning and managing national food production and distribution.
3. Efficient use of global natural resources for food production and on better distribution systems.

Responsibilities
1. To specify the meteorological and biological observations which are required for agricultural meteorology and to organize a special network of agro meteorological observation stations.
2. To collect and process such observations whether of a permanent or temporary nature.
3. To collect from other divisions such of the routine meteorological observations as are required for agricultural meteorological research and investigations.
4. To specify and issue the weather forecasts required for agriculture, and dissemination to agricultural interests.
5. To coordinate research and investigations in agricultural meteorology in close collaboration with other scientific institutions having related responsibilities, and to carry out such research and investigations as are required.
6. To maintain close contacts with agriculturists with a view of keeping them informed of the services which meteorologists can provide to agriculture and in order to be kept informed of the changing needs of agriculturists arising.
7. To prepare and arrange for the publication and wide distribution among agriculturists of bulletins containing meteorological advice and information of interest to agriculturists, to keep those publications upto date by revision, as necessary and to assist, as require, in arranging for the free exchange of these pamphlets among members of meteorological organization.

Climatic controls

Variation in weather factors is caused by climatic control. The factors, which control the climate of place, are called controls of climate. These controls may operate in different combinations with different intensities. The variation of weather or climatic elements is both spatial and vertical. The following are some of the most important climatic controls:
1. Latitude
2. Land and water distribution over earth
3. Altitude
4. High and low pressure systems
5. Winds
6. Air masses
7. Ocean currents
8. Mountain barriers
9. Distance from sea
10. Topography
11. Soil type and its color
12. Vegetation