Greenhouse gases & climate change

An increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is causing climate change.

Which of the following is a greenhouse gas?

Tick () one box.

Chlorine

Methane

Nitrogen

Carbon dioxide and ozone are greenhouse gases.

Table 1 shows the concentrations of carbon dioxide and ozone in the atmosphere.

The concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is greater than the concentration of ozone.

Calculate how many times greater.

The concentration of carbon dioxide is 420 arbitrary units.

What is 420 arbitrary units to 1 significant figure?

Cutting down trees leads to an increase in the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Give one other process that increases the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Do not refer to deforestation in your answer.

Growing more trees could help decrease the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Explain why.

Predictions about climate change rely on many sources of data.

Table 2 shows some statements about climate change predictions.

Complete Table 2 to show whether each statement is an advantage or a disadvantage when predicting climate change.

Tick () one box in each row.

Which is one effect of climate change?

Tick () one box.

Increase in lung disease

More fossil fuels available

Rising sea-levels

An increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is causing global warming and climate change.

Explain: how scientists can predict future climate change

why there are uncertainties in the predictions.

Global warming increases the rate of evaporation of water from the sea.

Explain how increased evaporation could lead to an increasing rate of global warming.

You should refer to the interaction of radiation with matter in your answer.

Table 2 shows information about some greenhouse gases.

The concentration of methane in the atmosphere is greater than the concentration of CFCs.

Calculate the number of times greater.

Give your answer to 2 significant figures.

Most efforts to reduce greenhouse gases refer to carbon dioxide rather than to methane or CFCs.

Suggest why.

Use Table 2.

Bacteria can cause disease.

Bacterial cells do not have a nucleus.

Which term describes bacterial cells?

Tick (✓) one box.

Eukaryotic

Fungal

Prokaryotic

Bacterial cells have no nucleus and are smaller than animal cells.

Give one other difference between bacterial cells and animal cells.

Escherichia coli (E. coli) is a type of bacterium.

E. coli causes symptoms of food poisoning.

Water companies sterilise rain water to produce drinking water.

The drinking water is then transported to homes in underground pipes.

Flooding can cause contamination of the drinking water by E. coli.

Suggest how people should treat drinking water at home if there is a risk of E. coli contamination.

Figure 1 shows two graphs:

The rainfall in one town in one month.

The number of cases of E. coli in the town in the same month.

The rainfall on day 12 was greater than on day 10.

Calculate how many times greater.

Symptoms of E. coli infection usually occur 5 days after infection.

A scientist stated:

‘Increased rainfall causes an increase in the number of cases of E. coli.’

Describe one piece of evidence from Figure 1 that supports the scientist’s statement.

Why might the number of cases of E. coli infection increase in the future?

Tick (✓) one box.

Climate change is causing loss of habitats for wildlife.

Climate change is causing more extreme rainfall.

Climate change is causing sea-levels to be lower.

Climate change is caused by an increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas.

Name two other greenhouse gases.

Do not refer to carbon dioxide in your answer.

Describe one way the rate of increase in carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere could be reduced.

This question is about greenhouse gases.

Methane is a greenhouse gas.

Name one other greenhouse gas.

Greenhouse gases cause global warming.

Global warming can cause a decrease in biodiversity.

What is biodiversity?

Tick (✓) one box.

The differences in sunlight in an area

The range of temperatures in an area

The variety of organisms in an area

Destruction of peat bogs decreases biodiversity.

Give one reason why peat bogs are being destroyed.

Which two human activities can increase biodiversity?

Tick (✓) two boxes.

Building more roads

Growing hedgerows between fields

Increasing the use of pesticides

Planting more woodlands

Selective breeding of farm animals

Methane (CH₄) is a small molecule.

A small molecule has a diameter of 1.0 nm.

1 m = 1 000 000 000 nm

What is the diameter of the small molecule in metres?

Tick (✓) one box.

1.0 × 10¹⁰ m

1.0 × 10⁹ m

1.0 × 10^‒9 m

1.0 × 10^‒10 m

Which structure is larger than a methane molecule?

Tick (✓) one box.

A carbon atom

An electron

A neutron

A protein

Figure 1 shows the concentration of methane in the Earth’s atmosphere from 2015 to 2019.

What was the concentration of methane in the Earth’s atmosphere in 2016?

Use Figure 1.

Concentration = ___________________ arbitrary units

Give one conclusion from Figure 1.

Figure 9 shows recent changes in the methane concentration in the Earth’s atmosphere.

Determine the percentage increase in methane concentration in the Earth’s atmosphere from January 2018 to January 2019.

Methane is a greenhouse gas.

Scientists cannot make accurate predictions about the concentration of methane in the Earth’s atmosphere in the future.

Give one reason why.

Use Figure 9.

Explain why protecting peat bogs may reduce global warming.

Greenhouse gases maintain temperatures on Earth high enough to support life.

Describe the greenhouse effect in terms of the interaction of short-wavelength and long-wavelength radiation with matter.

The Earth is estimated to be 4.6 billion years old.

The Earth’s early atmosphere changed over time.

Describe the evidence scientists use to form theories about:

how the Earth’s atmosphere was formed how the composition of the Earth’s atmosphere changed.

Sewers are often blocked by ‘fatbergs’.

Fatbergs are made of very large lumps of fat and other solids.

The fat and solids come from waste being washed down drains and flushed down toilets.

Figure 11 shows a person holding a small fatberg.

The chemical composition of fatbergs can be tested.

Describe how a sample from a fatberg could be tested for fat and for protein.

Positive result for fat

Positive result for protein

Some fats in fatbergs come from undigested food in faeces.

Most fat that humans eat is digested.

Give the two products of fat digestion.

It may be possible to use fatbergs as a fuel in power stations.

Burning 1.0 kg of fatbergs transfers 40 MJ of energy.

A power station could burn 1250 kg of fatbergs each hour.

Calculate the energy output from the power station in 1 year.

1 year = 8760 hours

Energy output in 1 year = MJ

Evaluate burning fatbergs in power stations compared with burning coal in power stations.

Figure 3 shows a food chain.

Draw one line from each description to the organism in the food chain.

Which word describes the total number of crabs in this habitat?

Tick (✓) one box.

Explain what will happen to the number of loggerhead turtles if there are fewer crabs.

Use information from Figure 3.

What type of factor is a new predator?

Tick (✓) one box.

Female loggerhead turtles lay their eggs on sandy beaches.

Scientists recorded data about turtles on one beach.

Figure 4 shows:

• the number of eggs each turtle laid

• the length of the turtle that laid the eggs.

Describe the trend in the data on Figure 4.

Female loggerhead turtles return to the same beach each year to lay their eggs.

Global warming is causing the sea level to rise.

Explain the effect that sea levels rising might have on the number of loggerhead turtles.

Greenhouse gases are one cause of global warming.

Methane is a greenhouse gas.

The concentration of methane in the atmosphere was:

• 720 arbitrary units in 1840

• 1872 arbitrary units in 2018.

How many times greater was the concentration of methane in the atmosphere in 2018 than in 1840?

Which two human activities cause an increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere?

Tick (✓) two boxes.