Introduction to Modern Climate Change 3rd Edition by Andrew E. Dessler, ISBN-13: 978-1108793872

Description

Introduction to Modern Climate Change 3rd Edition by Andrew E. Dessler, ISBN-13: 978-1108793872

[PDF eBook eTextbook]

• Publisher: ‎ Cambridge University Press; 3rd edition (November 18, 2021)
• Language: ‎ English
• 288 pages
• ISBN-10: ‎ 1108793878
• ISBN-13: ‎ 978-1108793872

Highly acclaimed textbook on the science, economics, and policy of modern climate change, for both science students and non-science majors.

The third edition of this introductory textbook for both science students and non-science majors has been brought completely up-to-date. It reflects recent scientific progress in the field, as well as advances in the political arena around climate change. As in previous editions, it is tightly focussed on anthropogenic climate change. The first part of the book concentrates on the science of modern climate change, including evidence that the Earth is warming and a basic description of climate physics. Concepts such as radiative forcing, climate feedbacks, and the carbon cycle are discussed and explained using basic physics and algebra. The second half of the book goes beyond the science to address the economics and policy options to address climate change. The book’s goal is for a student to leave the class ready to engage in the public policy debate on the climate crisis.

Table of Contents:

Half-title

Reviews

Title page

Copyright information

Dedication

Contents

Preface

Key Features

Updates Since the Previous Edition

Book Organization

Readership and Pedagogy

Online Resources

Acknowledgments

1 An Introduction to the Climate Problem

1.1 What Is Climate?

1.2 What Is Climate Change?

1.3 A Coordinate System for the Earth

1.4 Why You Should Believe This Textbook

1.4.1 How Science Works

1.4.2 Scientific Assessments

1.5 Chapter Summary

Additional Resources

Terms

Problems

2 Is the Climate Changing?

2.1 Temperature Anomalies

2.2 Recent Climate Change

2.2.1 Surface Thermometer Record

2.2.2 Satellite Measurements of Temperature

2.2.3 Ice

2.2.3.1 Glaciers

2.2.3.2 Sea Ice

2.2.3.3 Ice Sheets

2.2.4 Ocean Temperatures

2.2.5 Sea Level

2.2.6 Putting It Together: Is Today’s Climate Changing?

2.2.7 What Is Not Evidence of Climate Change

2.3 Climate over the Earth’s History

2.3.1 Paleoproxies

2.3.2 The Earth’s Long-Term Climate Record

2.4 Chapter Summary

Additional Resources

Terms

Problems

3 Radiation and Energy Balance

3.1 Temperature and Energy

3.2 Electromagnetic Radiation

3.3 Blackbody Radiation

3.4 Energy Balance

3.5 Chapter Summary

Terms

Problems

4 A Simple Climate Model

4.1 The Source of Energy for Our Climate System

4.2 Energy Loss to Space

4.3 The Greenhouse Effect

4.3.1 One-layer Model

4.3.2 Two-layer Model

4.3.3 An n-Layer Model

4.4 Testing Our Theory with Other Planets

4.5 Chapter Summary

Terms

Problems

5 The Carbon Cycle

5.1 Greenhouse Gases and Our Atmosphere’s Composition

5.2 Atmosphere-Land Biosphere-Ocean Carbon Exchange

5.2.1 Atmosphere-Land Biosphere Exchange

5.2.2 Atmosphere-Ocean Carbon Exchange

5.2.3 The Combined Atmosphere-Land Biosphere-Ocean System

5.3 Atmosphere-Rock Exchange

5.4 How Are Humans Perturbing the Carbon Cycle?

5.5 Some Commonly Asked Questions about the Carbon Cycle

5.6 The Long-term Fate of Carbon Dioxide

5.7 Methane

5.8 Other Greenhouse Gases

5.9 Chapter Summary

Terms

Problems

6 Forcing, Feedbacks, and Climate Sensitivity

6.1 Time Lags in the Climate System

6.2 Radiative Forcing

6.2.1 Greenhouse Gases

6.2.2 Aerosols

6.2.3 Total Net Forcing

6.3 Climate Sensitivity

6.3.1 No-feedback Calculation

6.3.2 Fast Feedbacks

6.3.3 Impact of the Fast Feedbacks

6.4 Slow Feedbacks

6.5 Chapter Summary

Terms

Problems

7 Why Is the Climate Changing?

7.1 Context of the Recent Warming

7.2 The First Suspect: Plate Tectonics

7.3 The Sun

7.4 The Earth’s Orbit

7.5 Unforced Variability

7.6 Greenhouse Gases

7.7 Putting It Together

7.8 Chapter Summary

Terms

Problems

8 Predictions of Future Climate Change

8.1 The Factors That Control Emissions

8.2 How These Factors Have Changed in the Past

8.3 Emissions Scenarios

8.3.1 Factors That Drive Emissions

8.3.2 Emissions

8.3.3 Atmospheric Abundance and Radiative Forcing

8.4 Predictions of Future Climate

8.4.1 Over the Next Century

8.4.2 Climate Change Beyond 2100

8.5 Is the Climate Predictable?

8.6 Chapter Summary

Terms

Problems

9 Impacts of Climate Change

9.1 Why Should You Care about Climate Change?

9.2 Physical Impacts

9.2.1 Temperature

9.2.2 Precipitation

9.2.3 Sea-level Rise

9.2.4 Ocean Acidification

9.2.5 Hurricanes

9.2.6 Attribution Science

9.3 Impacts of These Changes

9.3.1 Non-linearity of Climate Impacts

9.3.2 Adaptation

9.3.3 Unmanaged Systems

9.3.4 Impacts That Are Already Occurring

9.4 Abrupt Climate Changes

9.5 Putting It Together

9.6 Chapter Summary

Terms

Problems

10 Exponential Growth

10.1 What Is Exponential Growth?

10.2 The Rule of 72

10.3 Catastrophe Is Closer Than You Think

10.3.1 Lily Pads

10.3.2 Coronavirus

10.3.3 Malthus

10.4 Discounting

10.4.1 The Time Value of Money

10.4.2 The Discount Rate

10.5 Putting It Together: The Social Cost of Carbon

10.5.1 The Obama Administration

10.5.2 The Trump Administration

10.6 Chapter Summary

Terms

Problems

11 Fundamentals of Climate Change Policy

11.1 Adaptation

11.2 Mitigation

11.2.1 How to Mitigate Climate Change

11.2.2 Technologies to Reduce Carbon Intensity

11.2.3 Time Scale of Mitigation

11.3 Solar Radiation Management

11.4 Carbon Dioxide Removal

11.5 Putting It Together

11.6 Chapter Summary

Terms

Problems

12 Mitigation Policies

12.1 The Economic Basis of Climate Change

12.2 Conventional Regulations

12.3 Market-based Regulations

12.3.1 Carbon Tax

12.3.2 Cap and Trade

12.3.3 Carbon Tax Versus Cap and Trade

12.3.4 Offsets

12.4 Information and Voluntary Methods

12.5 Putting the Approaches Together

12.6 Chapter Summary

Terms

Problems

13 A Brief History of Climate Science and Politics

13.1 The Beginning of Climate Science

13.2 The Emergence of Environmentalism

13.2.1 The Tobacco Strategy

13.3 The 1970s and 1980s: Ozone Depletion and Acid Rain

13.4 The 1970s and 1980s: The Ascent of Free Markets

13.5 Climate Science in the 1970s

13.6 The Year Everything Changed: 1988

13.7 The Framework Convention on Climate Change: The First Climate Treaty

13.8 The Kyoto Protocol

13.9 The George W. Bush Years: 2001-2009

13.10 The Obama Years: 2009-2017

13.11 The Paris Agreement

13.12 The Trump Years: 2017-2021

13.13 The Future: 2021 and Beyond

13.14 Chapter Summary

Terms

Problems

14 Putting It All Together: A Long-term Policy to Address Climate Change

14.1 Decisions Under Uncertainty: Should We Reduce Emissions?

14.2 Picking a Long-term Goal

14.2.1 Cost Versus Benefits

14.2.2 Target: 1.5C and 2C

14.3 Limiting Warming to 1.5C or 2C

14.3.1 Carbon Budgets

14.3.2 What Is Required to Achieve These Emissions Trajectories?

14.3.3 How Much Will This Cost?

14.3.4 What Are the Elements of a Coherent Climate Policy?

14.4 A Few Final Thoughts

14.5 Chapter Summary

Terms

Problems

Solutions to Selected Quantitative Problems

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 10

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

References

Index

Andrew E. Dessler is a climate scientist and professor of atmospheric sciences at Texas A&M University. He researches atmospheric chemistry, climate change, and climate change policy. He is a fellow of the American Geophysical Union and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The first edition of this book won the Louis J. Battan Author’s Award from the American Meteorological Society. He has authored two books on climate change: this one, and The Science and Politics of Global Climate Change: A Guide to the Debate (with Edward Parson; third edition published in 2019; Cambridge).

What makes us different?

• Instant Download

• Always Competitive Pricing

• 100% Privacy

• FREE Sample Available

• 24-7 LIVE Customer Support