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Scientific illustrator @vvzzyzyx into Climate Emergency adaptation. Cartoonist @cbfcomics. Plants. Tweets my own. momlife. she/her ✏️ 🎨

May 17, 2023, 21 tweets

@CO2Coalition To understand how CO2/temp relate, we need to explore #physics,
& the chem properties of the #carbondioxide molecule.

Learn about CO2’s #DipoleMoment & how change in energy balance affects DENSITY, & behavior.

Shit, I burnt my toast.
#STEMeducation
mdpi.com/2075-163X/13/1…

@CO2Coalition Dipole moments are the change in energy between atoms.

Think of this energy change as a soccer ball w a force towards a specific direction. This “pulls” naturally on atoms when they join together to make molecules.
Its based on the atoms’ electrons.

@CO2Coalition Electrons ‘spin’ around the nucleus of an atom (similar to planetary orbits)
chem.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/In…
The closer the electron to the center, the faster it has to spin. #MolecularOrbitalDiagrams for CO2 show us where electrons spin based on energy available.
butane.chem.uiuc.edu/pshapley/gench…

@CO2Coalition Predicting behavior of molecules can get quite complex and utilizes a lot of math.
But these properties are well-understood in #physics.

Calculating orbitals is a standard part of beginning physics education.

As is the understanding of energy transfer.

@CO2Coalition Another way to visualize an atom’s electron activity is in shell diagrams.

Electrons can be stimulated to spin faster, excite to different “shells” & drop back down to their previous speed in lower #orbitals after releasing the energy.

wondriumdaily.com/the-concept-of… #Shells #Aufbau

@CO2Coalition Wavelengths of energy in certain spectrums affects carbon dioxide’s molecular orbital behavior.

Specifically, the sun’s energy bouncing back off the Earth in the form of #infrared.

Each element’s ability to absorb energy, helps us identify the gas.

science.nasa.gov/ems/07_infrare…

@CO2Coalition Spectroscopes allow
#chemists & #physicists to understand interactions between energy & matter.

This data is utilized to produce CO2 lasers, & detect CO2 gas in a sample.


First year university-level #chemistry students also do properties of gas labs.

@CO2Coalition You can test physical properties of carbon dioxide gas at home with a few items from a workshop.

Or visit your local university physics lab to learn more about observing the infrared activity of carbon dioxide gas 😃

physics.upenn.edu/~pcn/Ms/18Phys…

@CO2Coalition Mythbusters did an episode
about the heat-absorbing effects
of different gases.

As temperatures increase, some gases delay the energy-loss.

With constant energy input,
this causes an increase in total temperature in the gas
(faster electrons).

@CO2Coalition In the atmosphere, as the sun’s rays bounce back towards space in the form of infrared wavelengths, carbon dioxide gas interacts w the energy.

This interaction slows
Earth’s energy-loss.

As the sun’s energy is constant,
we get heat-gain on Earth.

scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/…

@CO2Coalition This is the ONLY reason life exists on our humble rock. 😃

The perfect temperature?
Where water is in it’s LIQUID form?
Its all thanks to our atmosphere’s unique gas composition (& thanks to the water cycle and the carbon cycle)

climate.nasa.gov/faq/19/what-is…

@CO2Coalition Any adjustments to our #AtmosphericChemistry
endanger the delicate balance of energy leaving the planet
and cause changes in chemical reactions which cause
mass extinctions.
bgs.ac.uk/discovering-ge….

@CO2Coalition The Earth’s carbon cycle
has not always existed.

Carbon began cycling after chemical reactions became self-sustaining.

More recently,
complex chemical feedbacks
began causing regular
glacials and interglacials.

icecores.org/about-ice-cores

@CO2Coalition Historically,
MAJOR extinction events have been attributed to sudden release of heat-absorbing or heat-blocking gases.

These chemical reactions
in our atmosphere,
are fragile.

Volcanoes are a notorious for changing climate, asteroids too.

usgs.gov/programs/VHP/v…

@CO2Coalition We can learn
from chemical changes
from the past.

And prevent/mitigate mass extinction events by protecting established cycles from new feedback loops (which break protective self-sustaining chemical reactions)

nhm.ac.uk/discover/quick…

@CO2Coalition Bursts of CO2 as we are seeing today (from human emissions) have been seen in the geological past from different chemical sources.

The most analogous to ancient geology is the poof of CO2 before the MASSIVE carbon dioxide feedback after warming. #PETM

geolsoc.org.uk/~/media/shared…

@CO2Coalition A stage after sudden CO2 release, is the warming of the ocean, and buildup of H+ after carbon dioxide gas absorbs into the ocean water.

These disruptions change the oceanic chemistry, lowering marine oxygen.

This causes mass ocean die-offs.

southampton.ac.uk/news/2022/03/a…

@CO2Coalition Here is a #chemistry explainer about how ocean water interacts w CO2

noaa.gov/education/reso… #STEMeducation

@CO2Coalition The #PETM mass ocean deoxygenation can be seen in chemical isotopes.

Unfortunately, this is real life environmental feedback caused by massive carbon forcing.

Humans are causing this #ClimateEmergency
as you read this now.

Its up to us to mitigate.
e-education.psu.edu/earth103/node/…

@CO2Coalition Learn more about the #ClimateCrisis and how to protect what we have here climate.nasa.gov/evidence/

#Climate #ClimateChange #STEMeducation #STEM
for #ClimateScam peeps 💕

@CO2Coalition @threadreaderapp unroll please🧪

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