Astronomy 211

Assignment #2: Due March 27, 2008

 

Please answer the following from the PROBLEMS section of your text (8th edition). Each question is worth 3 marks so write a brief paragraph (but not longer) explaining as concisely and completely as you can.

Chapter 18: 3,4,8
Chapter 19: 1,7

 

Problems (6 marks each):

  1. Earlier in the term we estimated what the surface temperature of the Earth should be due to heating from the sun. Re-trace that argument and explain why this suggests the critical role that greenhouse gases play in Earth's atmosphere. You may use 250 W/m2 as the effective average solar irradiance at the Earth's surface.