acid rain Burning coal with lots of sulphur in it adds sulphuric acid to rain. The resulting acid rain can kill forests, lakes and streams.
aerosols Tiny particles that float in the atmosphere.
albedo Albedo means whiteness. It tells how bright something is and therefore how much sunlight it reflects to space.
Anthropocene A proposed new geological period, defined by human interference with the climate system.
biodiversity All life on earth, including its genetic diversity and ecological interconnectedness.
biofuels Fuels derived from living things (particularly plants), as opposed to fossil fuels.
biomass The total mass of living things in a given time and space—e.g. the biomass of your garden could be calculated (dogs and yourself included).
biosphere The part of our planet that supports life. Generally it is considered to extend to at least 11 kilometres up into the atmosphere, and about the same distance down into the ocean depths.
carbon budget The amount of carbon (or carbon equivalents) that can be emitted into the atmosphere before a threshold is reached.
carbon footprint The amount of carbon that people, industries or countries emit as they go about their business.
carbon sinks Regions or organisms that draw CO2 from the atmosphere.
carbon tax A tax on CO2 emissions. It would make industry seek innovative ways to reduce their pollution.
carbon trading The buying and selling of permits allowing people to emit carbon into the atmosphere.
CFCs Manufactured chemicals that destroy the ozone layer. They are also powerful greenhouse gases.
clathrates Methane trapped in ice crystals. They are common on the ocean floor.
climate change Changes to the climate system as a result of global warming.
climate modelling Using computers to project how our climate may change in the future.
climate variability The degree to which climate varies over a given time.
CO2 emissions Carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere. It may come from industry, plants, the ocean, volcanoes or other sources.
contrails Trails of water vapour generated by jet aircraft. They can turn into clouds.
cryosphere The frozen parts of the earth—the poles, for example.
ecosystem. The interconneted web of life, or a part of it.
El Niño The drought phase of the southern oscillation, which is a cycle bringing drought and flood to large parts of the earth, particularly Australia and South America.
emissions trading A system whereby polluters can trade the right to pollute, allowing those who can most cheaply reduce pollution to do so.
ethanol A kind of alcohol derived from plant matter, and which can be used as a transport or heating fuel.
fossil fuels Typically coal, oil and gas. These fuels are the fossil remains of organisms that lived millions of years ago.
geosequestration The storing of CO2 in the earth’s crust.
geothermal power Power derived from tapping heat in the Earth’s crust.
global dimming The cooling of Earth’s surface through air pollution or the natural release of certain compounds into the atmosphere.
global warming The warming of Earth’s surface through air pollution or the natural release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
green power The generation of electricity without emitting greenhouse gases.
greenhouse gases Gases that trap heat close to Earth’s surface. There are around 30 greenhouse gases, of which CO2 is the most important.
Gulf Stream An ocean current in the North Atlantic that brings heat to Europe.
hybrid-fuel vehicles Vehicles that have both an electric and fuel-driven (typically petrol) engine. The electric engine captures energy (such as that generated when braking) which is normally wasted.
hydro energy Electricity generated from flowing water.
hydrocarbon molecules Molecules composed of hydrogen and carbon. The long chain hydrocarbons (such as petrol and jet fuel) produce a lot of energy from a small volume. Because transport fuels need to be carried in a transport vehicle, such powerful fuels are valuable for transportation.
Jet Stream A current in the atmosphere which is important in influencing the weather in North America.
Kilowatt Enough electricity to run a small home.
La Niña The flood phase of the southern oscillation (see El Niño).
magic gates Times when the world’s climate shifts from one stable state to another.
Megawatt 1000 kilowatts. Enough electricity to run 500 large family homes.
methane A molecule made up of 4 hydrogen atoms and one carbon atom. It makes up 90 per cent of natural gas, which is the least polluting of the fossil fuels.
natural gas A gaseous fossil fuel that is around 90 per cent methane.
nuclear energy Energy derived from using radioactivity to boil water.
ozone hole A zone in the stratosphere which is depleted in ozone, and which develops annually over the south and north poles.
photovoltaics A technology which derives electricity directly from sunlight.
power grid The system used to get electricity from the power plant to your home.
renewable energy Energy derived from sources such as wind and the sun, which is effectively limitless.
solar power Power derived directly from harnessing the sun’s energy.
solar-thermal Technologies which yield both electricity and heat energy directly from the sun.
sustainability Technologies and lifestyles that give us all a long term future.
Sverdrups A measure of oceanic current flow. A Sverdrup is 1 million cubic metres of water per second per square kilometre.
telekinesis Action at a distance without a visible means of connection.
the carbon cycle A cycle describing how carbon passes through living things, the atmosphere, oceans and Earth’s crust.
tidal power Electricity derived from using tidal flows.
wind power Electricity derived from the wind.