Front cover image for The atmospheric environment : effects of human activity

The atmospheric environment : effects of human activity

Michael B. McElroy (Author)
An introduction to the physics and chemistry of Earth's atmosphere, this book explains the science behind some of the critical environmental controversies. It covers both the chemistry and physics of the atmosphere with an account of relevant aspects of ocean science and treats atmospheric science and the climate as an integrated whole.
Print Book, English, 2002
Princeton University Press, Princeton, 2002
xvi, 326 pages, 8 pages of plates : illustrations (some color), maps (some color) ; 29 cm
9780691006918, 0691006911
46822409
Introduction. Problems of Global Scale: The Ozone Layer and Climate Change ; Problems of Regional and Local Scale ; Roadmap of the Book
Basic Physical Concepts. Length, Time, and Mass ; Speed, Velocity, and Acceleration ; Force ; Vectors ; Work and Energy ; Temperature ; Escape Velocity ; Pressure ; The Perfect Gas Law ; Angular Momentum ; More on Circular Motion ; Summary
Basic Chemical Concepts. Atoms and Molecules ; Chemical Bonds ; Acids and Bases; Energy on the Molecular Level ; The Energetics of Reactions ; Summary
Properties of Water. Molecular Perspective ; Phase Diagrams ; Measuring the Abundance of H₂O in the Atmosphere
Atmospheric History and Composition. Perspectives on the Origin and Early Evolution of Earth as a Planet ; The Early Evolution of Life on Earth and Its Atmospheric Consequences ; Perspectives on the Changes in Composition Associated with Human Activity
Energy Budget of the Atmosphere. Electromagnetic Radiation ; Solar Radiation ; Terrestrial Radiation ; Global Energy Balance ; Layer Model for the Atmosphere ; Summary
Vertical Structure of the Atmosphere. The Barometric Law ; Layers of the Atmosphere ; Adiabatic Motion in the Vertical ; Vertical Motion ; Condensation, Clouds, and Precipitation ; Models for the Thermal Structure of the Atmosphere ; Radiative Balance as a Function of Latitude ; Modeling the Changing Climate
Horizontal Motion of the Atmosphere. The Land-Sea Breeze Problem ; Hadley's Model for the General Circulation ; Angular Momentum and the West-East Coriolis Force ; Centrifugal Force and the North-South Component of the Coriolis Force ; Hadley's Circulation Revisited ; The Concept of Geostrophy ; Effects of Friction ; Further Perspectives on the General Circulation ; Transport by Eddies
; The Angular Momentum Budget of the Atmosphere ; The Origin of Eddies ; Summary
Dynamics of the Ocean. Surface Currents ; Vertical Structure of the Ocean and the Formation of Deep Water ; Vertical Motions ; Summary
Climate through the Ages. The Past 150 Years ; The Past 20,000 Years ; The Past 3 Million Years ; The Past 130 Million Years ; From Earliest Times to the Cretaceous ; Summary
The Carbon Cycle. Carbon Cycle ; The Capacity of the Ocean as a Sink for Industrial CO₂ ; The Contemporary Budget of Atmospheric CO₂ ; Projections for the Future ; Summary
Cycles of Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sulfur. The Nitrogen Cycle and the Budget of N₂O ; The Phosphorus Cycle ; The Sulfur Cycle ; Summary
Stratospheric Ozone (I): Chapman's Formulation for the Chemistry of an Oxygen-Nitrogen Atmosphere. Chapman's Treatment for the Photochemistry of an Oxygen-Nitrogen Atmosphere ; Evaluation of Rates for Photolytic Processes ; The Concept of Odd Oxygen and the Evaluation of Lifetimes for Chemical Species; Summary
Stratospheric Ozone (II): The Role of Radicals. The Chemistry of an Oxygen-Nitrogen-Hydrogen Atmosphere ; The Chemistry of Chlorine ; The Chemistry of Bromine; Summary
Stratospheric Ozone (III): Influence of Heterogeneous Chemistry. The Role of Polar Stratospheric Clouds ; The Chemistry of the Arctic Stratosphere The Role of Heterogeneous Chemistry at Mid- and Low Latitudes ; Summary
Stratospheric Ozone (IV): Influence of Dynamics. Stratospheric Dynamics ; The Distribution of Ozone with Latitude; Summary
The Chemistry of the Troposphere. The Chemistry of Tropospheric OH ; The Chemistry of CO The Chemistry of CH₄ The Chemistry of Smog ; The Global Distribution of Tropospheric OH and the Oxidative Capacity of the Atmosphere ; The Budget of Tropospheric Ozone ; The Budget of Atmospheric Methane; Summary
The Chemistry of Precipitation. The Solubility of Atmospheric Gases in the Liquid Phase ; The pH of Atmospheric Water in Equilibrium with CO₂ ; The Contribution of Nitrogen Oxides to the Acidity of Atmospheric Water ; Contribution of Sulfur to the Acidity of Atmospheric Water ; Neutralization of the Acidity of Atmospheric Water in the Presence of Ammonia ; Observations of the Chemistry of Precipitation ; Summary
Prospects for Climate Change. The Challenge for Models ; Results from the Hadley Centre Model ; Summary
Policy Responses to Climate Change. The Kyoto Protocol ; Prospects for Enhancement of the Protocol ; Concluding Remarks