PART 1:

Directions:Go to https://www.skepticalscience.com/rcp.php and answer the following questions about RCPs, the latest way of describing scenarios in the IPCC’s 5th Assessment Report (AR5), which was published in 2014.

TAB 1: “Introduction”

1.What are 2 reasons emissions scenarios necessary?(4 points)

2.What groups of people use the RCP emission scenarios? Also, explain Figure 1 on the webpage(6 points)

TAB 2:“Creating New Scenarios”:

1.Is thelatest RCP emissions scenario method from AR5 (IPCC’s 5th AssessmentReport)a parallel approach or a sequential approach? Explain why.(4 points)

2.What are the 4 design criteria for the RCPs in your own words? (6 points)

TAB 3: “Technical Summary”

1.Describe primary characteristics of each of the 4 RCPs. (8 points)

2.What is the horizontal resolution grid spacing (in degrees) of the data output for the RCP data? (2 points)

PART 2:

Directions:Go to the website http://cal-adapt.org/. Feel free to play around with the website. At the top of the website click on the “TOOLS” link. Please complete the following for the 4 different sections below that you see on the website: (10 points each)1)

Annual Averages:

a.Scroll down and you will find the map tool. Use the map tool to change your location to San Jose, CA. Zoom in and double click on the grid box for downtown San Jose. Makesure you press ‘update map’.

b.The annual average maximum temperature plot shows the output of the annual average maximum temperature from many different climate model outputs from using the RCP 4.5 emissions scenario. Compared to the 1961-1990 annual average max temp. for San Jose, how much will San Jose’s average max temperature warm to by the 2070-2099 climate normal?

c. Same as C, but for RCP 8.5?

d.What about the annual average minimum temperature for both RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5?

e.Describe how the annual average precipitation might change for San Jose from both scenarios? More flooding? More drought? What do you notice from the chart?

2) Extreme Heat

a.Go back to the original website (cal-adapt.org/tools/) and click on the Extreme Heat block. Make sure that you are focused on San Jose again.

b.What is the extreme heat threshold for San Jose?

c.How do the average number of extreme heat days change between RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5?

3) Sea Level Rise

a.Go back to (cal-adapt.org/tools/) and click on the Sea Level Rise block.

b.Describe interesting things you see in the SF Bay area from different rising sea level amounts.