Prime Time 7/8, Writing, Arbeitsheft

63 15.2 Focus on content Aspects of climate change Read the text “What is climate change?” carefully and answer the following questions. 1. What are the causes of climate change? 2. What are the effects of climate change? 3. Which aspects make climate change worse? 15.3 Focus on vocabulary and style Arctic ice melt could trigger uncontrollable climate change at a global level a) Read the following text and underline/highlight all the words and phrases which express some form of change or development. 1  2  Arctic scientists have pointed out in a recent report that the effects of Arctic warming could soon be felt as far away as the Indian Ocean, issuing a stark warning that changes in the region could cause uncontrollable climate change at a global level. In November 2016 temperatures in the Arctic were about 20 °C above what was expected, which scientists described as “off the charts”. Sea ice recorded for the time of year was at the lowest extent yet. “The warning signals are getting louder,” said Marcus Carson of the Stockholm Environment Institute. “These developments also make the potential for triggering tipping points and feedback loops much larger.” Climate tipping points occur when a natural system, such as the polar ice cap, undergoes sudden or overwhelming change that has a profound effect on surrounding ecosystems, often irreversible. In the Arctic, the tipping points identified in the new report include: growth in vegetation on the tundra, which replaces reflective snow and ice with darker vegetation, which absorbs more heat; higher releases of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, from the tundra as it warms; shifts in snow distribution that warm the ocean, resulting in altered climate patterns as far away as Asia, where the monsoon could be affected; and the collapse of some key Arctic fisheries, with knock-on effects on ocean ecosystems around the globe. Scientists have speculated for some years that so-called feedback mechanisms, by which the warming of one area or type of landscape has knock-on effects for whole ecosystems, could suddenly take hold and change the dynamics of Arctic ice melting from a relatively slow to a fast-moving phenomenon with unpredictable and potentially irreversible consequences for global warming. For instance, when sea ice shrinks it leaves areas of dark ocean that absorb more heat than the reflective ice, which in turn causes further shrinkage, and so on in a spiral. The Arctic ice cap helps to cool sea and air temperatures by reflecting much of the sun’s radiation back into space and acting as a global cooler when winds and ocean currents swirl over and under it. It has long been known to play a key part in the global climate system, but the difficulty and expense of close monitoring have meant that scientists have only in recent years been able to make detailed assessments. The authors of the report, billed as the first comprehensive study of ecosystems and societies in the region, also warned that people living in and near 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv