Members:

Mabalot, Ma. Abigael S.

Zaplan, Lhicole

CLIMATE CHANGE

PROBLEMS

EL NIÑO

El Niño is defined by prolonged differences in the Pacific Ocean sea surface tempretures when compared with the average value. The accepted definition is a warming or cooling of at least 0.5°C (0.9°F) averaged over the east-central tropical Pacific Ocean. Typically, this anomaly happens at irregular intervals of two to seven years, and lasts nine months to two years.The average period length is five years. When this warming or cooling occurs for only seven to nine months, it is classified as El Niño/La Niña "conditions"; when it occurs for more than that period, it is classified as El Niño/La Niña "episodes"

DEFINITION

• In normal, non-El Niño conditions, trade winds blow in a westerly direction along the equator. These winds pile up warm surface water in the western Pacific, so the sea surface is as much as 18 inches higher in the western Pacific than in the eastern Pacific. These trade winds are one of the main sources of fuel for the Humboldt Current. The Humboldt Current is a cold ocean current which flows north along the coasts of Chile and Peru, then turns west and warms as it moves out into the Central Pacific. So, the normal situation is warmer water in the western Pacific, cooler in the eastern.

• In an El Niño, the equatorial westerly winds diminish. As a result, the Humboldt Current weakens and this allows the waters along the coast of Chile and Peru to warm and creates warmer than usual conditions along the coast of South America. As far as we know, other forces, such as volcanic eruptions (submarine or terrestrial) and sunspots, do not cause El Niños.

CAUSES

PRIMARY EFFECTS: These are directly caused

Alteration of weather patterns include:• Temperature change• Precipitation changes• Storm track changes and intensity• Alteration of currents and ocean temperature

SECONDARY EFFECTS: These are some consequences• Fires• Drought• Flooding• Economic change, price of heating, food, etc.• Political and social unrest• Crash of fisheries• Famine• Plagues (Hanta virus)• Insect Population explosion leading to disease and plagues• Crop failure

EFFECTS

El Nino (or more correctly, El Nino Southern Oscillation) cannot be stopped, reversed, prevented, mitigated, etc.. It is a natural climatological phenomenon with both an atmospheric and oceanic component which extends across the entire Tropical Pacific Ocean - there is nothing humans can do to influence this type of thing. The El Nino (the warm phase) phase of this oscillation features a weakening or even reversal of the trade winds in this part of the world (the atmospheric component), which causes primarily a movement of warmer water from the western Pacific all the way to the South American Coast where cooler water typically upwells (the oceanic component). As a result of this, and of this particular region of the earth being quite important to the entire world's climate for a variety of complex reasons, El Nino exerts an influence at some level on all of Earth's climate.

ACTION PLANS (SOLUTIONS)

LA NIÑA

DEFINITION• La Niña means “The Little Girl”. • “El Viejo”, anti-El Niño, or simply "a cold event" or "a cold

episode". • develops over the central and eastern equatorial Pacific

and is characterized by unusually cold surface temperatures of the ocean.

• associated with extreme climatic variability such as devastating rains and winds

• This condition can prevail for two to three seasons (six to nine months) thus affecting the economy on both the local and global scales.

 

CAUSES• La Niña is preceded by a buildup of cooler-than-normal

subsurface waters in the tropical Pacific.

• Eastward-moving atmospheric and oceanic waves help bring the cold water to the surface through a complex series of events still being studied. In time, the easterly trade winds strengthen, cold upwelling off Peru and Ecuador intensifies, and sea-surface temperatures (SSTs) drop below normal.

• During the 1988- 89 La Niña, SSTs fell to as much as 4 degrees C (7 degrees F) below normal. Both La Niña and El Niño tend to peak during the Northern Hemisphere winter.

EFFECTS• formation of rain-producing clouds over the eastern

equatorial Pacific region while at the same time enhancing rainfall over the western equatorial Pacific region (Indonesia, Malaysia and northern Australia.)

• Effects on Philippine climate include anomalies in rainfall, temperature and tropical cyclone activities

• Events in which we experience near normal to above normal rainfall conditions particularly over the eastern sections of the country

• tropical cyclone formation over the western Pacific which tends to increase the number of tropical cyclones

• thousands of hectares of prime agricultural lands are being destroyed by floodwaters

• During La Niña episodes rainfall is enhanced across the western equatorial Pacific, Indonesia and the Philippines and is nearly absent across the eastern equatorial Pacific. Elsewhere, wetter than normal conditions tend to be observed during December-February (DJF) over northern South America and southern Africa, and during June-August (JJA) over southeastern Australia. Drier than normal conditions are generally observed along coastal Ecuador, northwestern Peru and equatorial eastern Africa during DJF, and over southern Brazil and central Argentina during JJA.

La Niña episodes also contribute to large-scale temperature departures throughout the world, with most of the affected regions experiencing abnormally cool conditions. Some of the most prominent temperature departures include: 1) below-normal temperatures during December-February over southeastern Africa, Japan, southern Alaska and western/central Canada, and southeastern Brazil; 2) cooler than normal conditions during June-August across India and southeastern Asia, along the west coast of South America, across the Gulf of Guinea region, and across northern South America and portions of central America; and 3) warmer than normal conditions during December-February along the Gulf coast of the United States.

©http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/analysis_monitoring/ensostuff/ensofaq.shtml#HAPPENS

ACTION PLANS (SOLUTIONS)• When the Pacific Ocean warms and cools with El Niño and La Niña, global

temperatures rise and fall, it’s something we have no control of because these two are naturally occurring phenomena that result from interactions between the ocean surface and the atmosphere over the tropical Pacific.

• Changes in the ocean surface temperatures affect tropical rainfall patterns and atmospheric winds over the Pacific ocean, which in turn impact the ocean temperatures and currents. The El Nino and La Niña related patterns of tropical rainfall cause changes in the weather patterns around the globe.

• But it doesn’t mean we can’t do anything to help our environment in making it a better place to live in, if we can’t avoid these things to happen, we can at least do something to lessen the damage it will do in our environment.

SELF, HOUSE, COMMUNITY• As the old adage says, “REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE” I

• Switch to eco-friendly cleaning products

• Use natural lighting whenever possible and switch to compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs

• Reduce use of plastic bags, bring your own eco-bag whenever shopping especially when buying groceries

• Use water efficiently

• Students - Get involved in ecological activities like tree planting, community clean-up

NATIONAL• Ban of disposable plastics and styrofoam in different

places in our country like Makati, Quezon City and other places here in the Philiipines

• Kapit bisig para sa ilog Pasig –ABS-CBN Foundation river-rehabilitation project to make way for a cleaner waterways in Metro Manila

• Waste minimization, segregation, recycling, and composting

• Freshwater and marine conservation• Tree planting

INTERNATIONAL• EARTH HOUR

• World Environment Day - annual event that is aimed at being the biggest and most widely celebrated global day for positive environmental action. World Environment Day activities take place all year round and climax on 5 June every year, involving everyone from everywhere.

ABSOLUTE WATER SURFACE TEMPERATUREIN THE PACIFIC OCEAN

The map on the left side shows the development of the Pacific Ocean's surface water temperatures. The Philippines can be found on the extreme left side of the map. In the center are the islands of Hawaii and on the right side are parts of the USA, Mexico, Central America and Peru.The absolute surface temperatures are in indicator for typhoon/hurricane probability. An ocean temperature of 26.5°C (79.7°F]) spanning through a depth of at least 50 metres (160 ft) is considered the minimum to maintain the special mesocyclone(vortex of air, approximately 2 to 10 km in diameter within a convective storm) that is the tropical cyclone. These warm waters are needed to maintain the warm core that fuels tropical systems. A minimum distance of 500 km (300 mi) from the equator is normally needed for tropical cyclogenesis.

© National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

ANOMALIES OF WATER SURFACE IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN

Much more important for the El Niño / La Niña effects are the temperature differences of the surface waters around the equator. A difference of +/- 0.5°C (white color) is considered to be normal. A derivation to yellow and red along the equator means warmer equatorial waters = El Niño.A bluish color along the equator means colder equatorial waters = La Niña

© National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

ESSAY

AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH

Globally Understanding an Inconvenient TruthGlobal warming has become a fast approaching problem. It is affecting the planet and all those who live on it. Al Gore’s documentary, An Inconvenient Truthportrays that the problem of global warming is affecting the world and will not go away without change. So, every individual needs to change their daily activities in order to complement the environment. This can create a better future that our children can live in without fear of global warming. One person won’t make a difference, but with the help of films like An Inconvenient Truth, the knowledge of global warming can be spread globally.

- Lhicole Zaplan

The earth needs us. It is something that the documentary film Inconvenient Truth is trying to tell us. As Al Gore said in the film, "It is now clear that we face a deepening global climate crisis that requires us to act boldly, quickly, and wisely." The film talks about how climate change affects everything in this world, all the living things, especially us, humans. In which we all will suffer the consequences that we are responsible of. Al Gore, as an advocate for the environment, helps us realize that what the world is experiencing something serious. We need to act in order to help and save the environment and ourselves from the inevitable consequences of climate change. Consequences like melting of Antarctic ice because of the high carbon dioxide and temperature on earth. The melting of ice makes all countries vulnerable of being erased from the world map, especially the small countries. Not only we humans will suffer, also the animals living in Antarctic are affected. Like polar bears that live in the ice, they will lose their natural habitat, if that happens, they will become extinct. The super typhoons we experience are part of the consequences of not taking good care of our environment. If we only just stop for a while and think about the condition of the world we live in. We can all do something to help our mother earth. Simple acts like conserving electricity and water, walking instead of driving, and tree planting is already one step closer to a better environment. We all will benefit if we just stop being ignorant and if we act fast to help our mother earth.

- Ma. Abigael S. Mabalot

POEM AND SONG ABOUT FAITH

Faith is the one you don’t find because you have faith is the one you need when you need

Faith gives courage to believe againMake you smile in the blink of an eye

Faith is the door you keep knocking on but wont answer At least that’s what you think until after

When we fall we struggle back up with faith When we think we know what it is we scare

Although when faith arrives we have to be great Since it does not revenge but it must pay

When things don’t make sense we turn to hope hope becomes believe believe become faith

Faith is everything but one thing it is notFaith is never unsure but always is a trust

To have faith you must believe to believe you need hopeTo hope ye shall have faith! ! !

HASTE THE DAY

Letting Go Of Your Hand I Walk Alone AgainOn This Path In This Pain

My Flesh Burned Away My Body Broken Thought I Was Strong

I See The Perfect DayI Won't Walk Away(x2)

I Gave My Faith To The Wind TodayI Won't Let You Make The Same Mistake

It Seems So Easy To Walk AwayRemember How It Use To Be

i'll never, (NEVER)Ill never, (NEVER)

Make the same mistakes!