Glossary topic · 19 terms
Climate science.
The physics of a warming planet in plain English, with the source next to every idea.
Albedo
The fraction of incoming sunlight a surface reflects.
Climate scienceAtmospheric lifetime
A measure of how long a substance remains in the atmosphere before removal or chemical transformation.
Climate scienceCarbon budget
The cumulative amount of CO₂ compatible with a stated warming limit and probability under specified assumptions.
Climate scienceCarbon dioxide
A gas with the chemical formula CO₂, released by processes including respiration, fossil fuel combustion and land-use change.
Climate scienceClimate change
A lasting change in the average state or variability of the climate, observed over decades or longer.
Climate scienceClimate feedback
A process triggered by a climate change that then strengthens or weakens the original response.
Climate scienceClimate model
A mathematical representation of the climate system used to investigate its behaviour and possible responses.
Climate scienceClimate projection
A simulated future response of the climate system to an assumed emissions or concentration pathway.
Climate scienceClimate sensitivity
A measure of the temperature response to a change in radiative forcing.
Climate scienceClimate tipping point
A threshold beyond which a change can become self-sustaining or lead to a different state of a system.
Climate scienceClimate variability
Fluctuations in climate conditions around their average over different spatial and temporal scales.
Climate scienceGlobal warming
The long-term rise in global surface temperature, commonly measured against a pre-industrial baseline.
Climate scienceGreenhouse effect
Warming of the surface and lower atmosphere caused by gases that absorb and emit infrared radiation.
Climate scienceGreenhouse gas
An atmospheric gas that absorbs and emits infrared radiation at wavelengths relevant to Earth's energy balance.
Climate scienceIPCC
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the UN body that assesses published research on climate change for governments.
Climate scienceNitrous oxide
A long-lived greenhouse gas with the formula N₂O, associated with natural processes and activities such as fertiliser use.
Climate sciencePre-industrial baseline
A reference period used to compare present temperatures with conditions before large-scale industrial warming.
Climate scienceRadiative forcing
A change in Earth's energy balance caused by a factor such as increased greenhouse gases or altered solar input.
Climate scienceTemperature overshoot
A period during which global warming temporarily exceeds a specified level before returning below it.