This sketch represents an hypothetical global warming scenario in
which the atmosphere generally warms up, but the warming is most
pronounced in low altitudes. This scenario also involves a slight cooling at higher
altitudes due, for example, to ozone depletion, which might lead
to a reduction in absorption of incoming solar ultraviolet energy as well
as a reduction of absorption of outgoing infrared energy. (Remember that
ozone is optically active at both ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths.)
How would you describe the systematic
change of static stability for this scenario? Would the atmosphere after the
warming be systematically more statically stable, less statically stable, or about the same? Based on your
answer, would you expect the occurence of convection, cloudiness, and storminess to be
more frequent, less frequent, or about the same?
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