Why is predicting future sea level change such a tricky task? ...

[Chloeellawright]

Why is predicting future sea level change such a tricky task?
 
  What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

How are changes in climate predicted to affect natural ecosytems, including forests and insects?
 
  What will be an ideal response?

[lauravaras]

Answer to Question 1

It is difficult to predict future changes in sea level because the effects of global warming on the melting of continental glaciers are not well constrained. As the global climate warms, some ice sheets such as the one over Greenland should shrink, whereas others such as the one over East Antarctica may grow. The majority of the Earth's ice is locked up in these large ice sheets, so the impacts they could have on sea-level through glacial surges, growth, and melt-off are large.

Answer to Question 2

C3 plants, which cannot photosynthesize at low CO2 concentrations, are more sensitive to changes in CO2 concentrations. Therefore, increasing CO2 concentrations could lead to preferential growth of C3 plants (which include most trees). C4 plants, including tropical grasses, corn, and sugarcane, will not be greatly affected by higher CO2 levels. As the climate warms, some insects that are currently confined to warm, tropical climates (e.g., the Anopheles mosquito which carries malaria), may expand their ranges poleward. The potato leafhopper is a crop pest that may expand northward into the United States Midwest.

[Chloeellawright]

Correct answers!

[lauravaras]

Great! Please up vote