Carbon dioxide and

SC21c.2 temperature variations

The graph shows how carbon dioxide concentrations
in the Earth’s atmosphere have changed in the last
400 years. The units for CO2 concentration are ‘parts
per million volume’ (ppmv). Imagine you have
1 000 000 units of volume; the scale tells you how
many of those units will be carbon di xide rather
than other gases in the air.
1 a Over which 50 year period did the
concentration of atmospheric carbon
dioxide increase at its fastest rate?
b How can you tell this from the graph?
2 Estimate the increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration between 1750 and the year 2000.
3 Give two factors that might have caused the increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration.
4 Scientists can work out what carbon dioxide concentrations were like in 1750 using ice cores. Suggest one
reason why using this approach may not give an accurate value for global atmospheric concentrations.
5 Read the passage below and answer the questions that follow.
The earliest regular recordings of air temperatures come from England in 1659. Regular temperature
measurements from different places around the world started to be recorded in about 1800.
However, even without temperature records, scientists can get an idea of the temperatture at a certain time
in history in a certain place by looking at tree rings. Trees grow a ring inside their trunks each year. A warmer
year allows trees to grow faster and so form a wider ring.
In the seas and oceans, coral reefs are also influenced by temperature. As they grow, the coral animals
produce layers of rocky material underneath them. The layers form clear ands – one band for each year of
growth. Although this material is mainly calcium carbonate, the precise composition of substances in the layers
changes as the temperature of the surrounding water changes.
a What are the similarities and differences between extracting data from tree growth and coral growth?
b Suggest one reason why the rings from one species of tree might be better to use than another, when
looking at temperature variation in the past.
c Suggest one possible problem with using tree ring data or coral data on its own.
The next graph shows how atmospheric temperatures and carbon dioxide concentrations have changed in the
last 250 000 years.

6 Look at this graph. How can you tell that temperature and carbon dioxide concentration are correlated?
7 The Earth emits infrared radiation, which transfers energy into space. However, carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere absorbs some of this energy. Use this information to suggest a causal link to explain the
correlation in your answer to question 6.
8 Evaluate the idea that humans are responsible for the recent rise in global temperatures, using only the two
graphs on this sheet. Think about the evidence in the two graphs and what evidence is missing.

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