Earth’s Heat Budget
Introduction:
The number of daylight hours undergoes a cyclic change during the year at most places on Earth’s surface. The change in duration of daylight has an effect on Earth’s surface temperatures.
In this lab, you are to imagine an analogy in which incoming solar energy is money you receive and put into a bank account. The energy given off (emitted) by Earth is money you must withdraw from your bank account in order to meet expenses. The balance is the remaining energy or dollars because in this model the numbers do not represent real values. Instead the numbers are arbitrary units.
Objective: When finished with this lab, you will be able to compare the seasonal changed in the energy absorbed by Earth with the energy re-radiated and describe the effect this has upon surface temperature.
Procedure:
1) On the Report Sheet you will find a statement of your deposits and withdraws for one year. Assume you had a previous balance of 210 units (we had to start somewhere!). In November you deposited 100 units and had to withdraw 120 units. The difference in deposit and withdrawal is –20. this leaved you with a new balance of 190 units. In the statement on your Report Sheet, the row for November has been completed for you.
2) Now, calculate the difference between your deposit and withdrawal for December. Record the difference in the appropriate column of the statement on the Report Sheet.
3) Next, determine your new balance for December and record it.
4) In a similar manner, calculate the balances for each month for the remainder of the year and record on the Report Sheet.
5) Make a graph from your data plotting the following 3 quantities on ONE set of axes. Use a different color for each line and provide a key.
· amount deposited
· amount withdrawn
·the balance
6) Complete questions.