9781422272480

ATMOSPHERE

Weather and climate are important parts of our daily lives. They impact decisions we make, such as what we’re going to wear for the day and what activities we’re going to participate in. Weather has to do with the current conditions within the earth’s atmosphere in a local area. Look out the window right now and you’ll see an example of weather. Climate has to do with long-term weather patterns in an area. For example, areas that are considered to be desert climates have established patterns of low precipitation . While climate covers a long-term interval, it can still change. In fact, many scientists think the earth is currently experiencing a period of global warming. Changes in climate have consistently happened throughout the earth’s lengthy history, and typically take thousands and even millions of years to occur. However, the majority of climate scientists today believe that our current warming period is moving at a faster pace than what has happened in the past. These scientists believe that these changes in our climate are occurring because of human activities.

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