Mars has seasons just like Earth though they last about twice as long because the Martian year is almost twice that of Earth. Mars axial tilt is 25.2 degrees which is also very close to the 23.5 of Earth.
When a Martian hemisphere is experiencing summer, the polar cap shrinks back and may even disappear from view altogether. At the same time the darker regions grow darker and change slightly from year to year. It was once thought that these markings were vegetation, but we now know they are windblown dust.
When winter ensues, the polar cap of that hemisphere grows and may expand into the middle latitudes. The ice sheets of the polar caps are mainly carbon dioxide ice, but it is believed that there may be some water ice trapped underneath those sheets closest to the pole itself.
Generally Mars is quite cold with lows that reach -140 C (-220 F) but occasionally there are days that are quite balms reaching 20C (68 F.) Because soil and rock absorb heat from the Sun, the surface would be slightly warmer. Frost that forms during the night would melt and be released as water vapor during the day.
The thin, chill blanket of the Martian atmosphere has an average density less than one-hundredth of the Earth's. At 142 million miles from the Sun, Mars receives less than half the solar energy that reaches the Earth. Yet coupled with the tenuous air and Mars' daily rotation, that energy produces some remarkable weather. Clouds of water ice form high in the Martian air, driven by winds that can gust up to 50 mph on the surface—and more than 125 mph in the vast dust storms that astronomers have seen sweeping the planet.
www.ozgate.com
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Weather for summer; climate for life
As the summer holiday season approaches, is anyone paying attention to climate change, beyond a quick glance at the 7 day weather forecast?
In recent months our headlines have been dominated by spending cuts and the budget deficit. Climate change hardly got a look in at emergency budget time.
Whilst the picture across Europe isn't much different, EU Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard recently raised hackles by proposing a unilateral increase from 20% to 30% in Europe's self imposed 2020 carbon reduction target. This higher limit is supposed to kick in only when the rest of the world gets serious and a global climate change deal is in place.
As we know, Copenhagen last year put paid to that, at least for the time being. However, the Commissioner's thinking was that the global recession has made the 2020 carbon reduction targets cheaper to achieve, and - deal or no deal - Europe now needs to crank up its commitment to reduction in order to drive up the price of carbon and kick start investment in clean tech, and to retain its leadership status on the issue.
Hardly tabloid news fodder - and, as it happens, the Commissioner subsequently backed down somewhat in the face of opposition.
Regrettably, when climate change has managed to hit the headlines, it's been confined to alleged skulduggery and intrigue amongst the scientists, allowing the sceptics to gain the upper hand with the continuing 'Climategate' debate.
What about farther afield, in those countries where low carbon laws and policies lag well behind Europe?
It is well known that only 1 in 5 US citizens of voting age has any regular interest in international affairs, so 'Climategate' is unlikely to have had much impact over the Pond, let alone talk of European carbon targets. With hundreds of miles of Gulf coastline to clean up, and continued offshore drilling to think about, the focus for some time to come of the average American is likely to remain on fossil fuel dependency and energy security.
And in many areas of the developing world, too many people are concerned with how to feed themselves on a daily basis to worry too much about what our scientists and politicians are up to.
In contrast, the view of UK business on all of this is becoming clearer, certainly if a recent global survey by Accenture is anything to go by. Despite the recent economic downturn, an overwhelming majority of corporate CEOs - 93 percent - believed sustainability will be critical to the future success of their companies.
More interestingly, they reckoned that within a decade, a tipping point could be reached whereby sustainability becomes fully integrated into core business - its capabilities, processes and systems, and throughout global supply chains and subsidiaries.
The key point is, climate change mitigation and the development of a worldwide low carbon economy is a massive business opportunity to be grasped. Crucially, a global climate change deal will create legal and policy frameworks in developing countries that will encourage long term investment. On the other hand, if Europe goes it alone with tougher carbon targets, it will make an already uneven playing field even worse and compromise European industrial competitiveness. That in turn risks calls for trade tariffs and protectionism.
So, despite the apathy - indeed hostility - in certain quarters, a global climate change deal appears good for business. But how on earth (pardon the pun), do we get one?
Refer : blogs.birminghampost.net
In recent months our headlines have been dominated by spending cuts and the budget deficit. Climate change hardly got a look in at emergency budget time.
Whilst the picture across Europe isn't much different, EU Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard recently raised hackles by proposing a unilateral increase from 20% to 30% in Europe's self imposed 2020 carbon reduction target. This higher limit is supposed to kick in only when the rest of the world gets serious and a global climate change deal is in place.
As we know, Copenhagen last year put paid to that, at least for the time being. However, the Commissioner's thinking was that the global recession has made the 2020 carbon reduction targets cheaper to achieve, and - deal or no deal - Europe now needs to crank up its commitment to reduction in order to drive up the price of carbon and kick start investment in clean tech, and to retain its leadership status on the issue.
Hardly tabloid news fodder - and, as it happens, the Commissioner subsequently backed down somewhat in the face of opposition.
Regrettably, when climate change has managed to hit the headlines, it's been confined to alleged skulduggery and intrigue amongst the scientists, allowing the sceptics to gain the upper hand with the continuing 'Climategate' debate.
What about farther afield, in those countries where low carbon laws and policies lag well behind Europe?
It is well known that only 1 in 5 US citizens of voting age has any regular interest in international affairs, so 'Climategate' is unlikely to have had much impact over the Pond, let alone talk of European carbon targets. With hundreds of miles of Gulf coastline to clean up, and continued offshore drilling to think about, the focus for some time to come of the average American is likely to remain on fossil fuel dependency and energy security.
And in many areas of the developing world, too many people are concerned with how to feed themselves on a daily basis to worry too much about what our scientists and politicians are up to.
In contrast, the view of UK business on all of this is becoming clearer, certainly if a recent global survey by Accenture is anything to go by. Despite the recent economic downturn, an overwhelming majority of corporate CEOs - 93 percent - believed sustainability will be critical to the future success of their companies.
More interestingly, they reckoned that within a decade, a tipping point could be reached whereby sustainability becomes fully integrated into core business - its capabilities, processes and systems, and throughout global supply chains and subsidiaries.
The key point is, climate change mitigation and the development of a worldwide low carbon economy is a massive business opportunity to be grasped. Crucially, a global climate change deal will create legal and policy frameworks in developing countries that will encourage long term investment. On the other hand, if Europe goes it alone with tougher carbon targets, it will make an already uneven playing field even worse and compromise European industrial competitiveness. That in turn risks calls for trade tariffs and protectionism.
So, despite the apathy - indeed hostility - in certain quarters, a global climate change deal appears good for business. But how on earth (pardon the pun), do we get one?
Refer : blogs.birminghampost.net
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