Quiz on Climate Change

Which gas is the main human-made driver of global warming?

• Carbon dioxide ✓ (Correct answer)
• Oxygen
• Nitrogen
• Helium

Source: CO2 from burning fossil fuels traps heat for centuries, making it the dominant climate culprit.

Rising temperatures are causing sea levels to do what?

• Rise ✓ (Correct answer)
• Freeze solid
• Stay perfectly flat
• Drop sharply

Source: Melting ice plus warming water expanding makes oceans creep ever higher up the coast.

Burning what kind of fuels releases the most greenhouse gases?

• Fossil fuels ✓ (Correct answer)
• Solar panels
• Wind turbines
• Nuclear rods

Source: Coal, oil and gas account for roughly three-quarters of all human greenhouse emissions.

The greenhouse effect works by trapping what near Earth's surface?

• Heat ✓ (Correct answer)
• Sound
• Rainfall
• Gravity

Source: Greenhouse gases let sunlight in but block escaping heat, like a blanket around the planet.

Cutting down which ecosystem worsens climate change by releasing stored carbon?

• Forests ✓ (Correct answer)
• Deserts
• Coral reefs
• Glaciers

Source: Trees are giant carbon vaults, so clearing forests both stops absorption and releases CO2.

Which energy source is considered renewable and low-carbon?

• Wind power ✓ (Correct answer)
• Natural gas
• Coal power
• Diesel power

Source: Wind turbines generate electricity with almost no emissions, unlike anything you burn.

Which 2015 international agreement aims to limit global warming?

• Paris Agreement ✓ (Correct answer)
• Kyoto Protocol
• Geneva Convention
• Montreal Protocol

Source: Nearly every nation signed in Paris, pledging to keep warming well below 2 degrees Celsius.

Which animal is often the poster species for shrinking Arctic sea ice?

• Polar bear ✓ (Correct answer)
• Penguin
• Kangaroo
• Camel

Source: Polar bears hunt seals from sea ice, so vanishing ice leaves them stranded and hungry.

Warming oceans are bleaching and killing which colourful marine structures?

• Coral reefs ✓ (Correct answer)
• Sand dunes
• Kelp forests
• Oyster beds

Source: Heat-stressed corals expel their algae and turn ghostly white, often dying off entirely.

Which everyday transport choice generally emits the most CO2 per traveller?

• Flying ✓ (Correct answer)
• Cycling
• Walking
• Taking the train

Source: A single long-haul flight can blow your entire yearly carbon budget in a few hours.

Which industrial-era event kicked off the modern surge in CO2 emissions?

• Industrial Revolution ✓ (Correct answer)
• Renaissance
• Space Race
• Digital Revolution

Source: Coal-powered factories from the 1800s mark where atmospheric CO2 began its steep climb.

Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas largely produced by what farming source?

• Cattle ✓ (Correct answer)
• Wheat fields
• Apple orchards
• Cotton crops

Source: Burping cows release methane that traps far more heat than CO2 over the short term.

Roughly what temperature rise limit did the Paris Agreement set as its toughest goal?

• 1.5 degrees ✓ (Correct answer)
• 5 degrees
• 10 degrees
• 0.1 degrees

Source: Crossing 1.5C is seen as a danger threshold beyond which impacts sharply intensify.

What name describes the warming-driven cycle where melting ice exposes darker land?

• Feedback loop ✓ (Correct answer)
• Carbon sink
• Jet stream
• Heat dome

Source: Dark surfaces absorb more heat than white ice, so melting speeds up even more melting.

Which organisation publishes the major global scientific reports on climate change?

• IPCC ✓ (Correct answer)
• WHO
• NASA only
• OPEC

Source: The IPCC pools thousands of scientists worldwide to assess the evidence every few years.

Oceans absorbing extra CO2 causes them to become more what?

• Acidic ✓ (Correct answer)
• Alkaline
• Salty
• Transparent

Source: Dissolved CO2 forms carbonic acid, dissolving the shells of clams, corals and plankton.

Frozen ground that releases carbon as it thaws in the far north is called what?

• Permafrost ✓ (Correct answer)
• Tundra moss
• Glacier till
• Pack ice

Source: Permafrost locks away ancient carbon, and thawing it could unleash a climate time bomb.

What term describes balancing emitted carbon with an equal amount removed?

• Net zero ✓ (Correct answer)
• Carbon peak
• Cap and trade
• Zero point

Source: Net zero means you can still emit, as long as you pull the same amount back out.

Which gas, used in old fridges, is a greenhouse agent thousands of times stronger than CO2?

• Hydrofluorocarbons ✓ (Correct answer)
• Carbon monoxide
• Sulphur dioxide
• Argon

Source: HFCs warm the planet far more per molecule, which is why treaties now phase them out.

Which ocean current system, vital to Europe's climate, scientists fear is weakening?

• Gulf Stream ✓ (Correct answer)
• Humboldt Current
• Kuroshio Current
• Benguela Current

Source: The Gulf Stream ferries warmth to Europe, and meltwater could stall this giant conveyor belt.