Atmospheric Processes and Climate Change

Abstract

The atmosphere has a significant impact on the physical environment and the people. The atmospheric processes go hand in hand with surface processes and affect the climate and contribute to the changing climate. The adversely altering environment is not the only issue that comes with climate change, but the impact it has on human and other biological populations is also worrisome and needs to be addressed. Geospatial technologies, which combine remote sensing and geographic information systems, provide flexible cross-scale tools for examining climate change, the long-term evolution of the climate system, and its effects on social and ecological systems. In order to better understand how the Earth, ocean, biosphere, cryosphere, and atmosphere have changed over time, scientists have used long-term satellite data sets. The chapter discusses the various atmospheric processes, their implications, their inter-relationship with land processes, and the application of geospatial methods, in particular remote sensing, for the observation and monitoring of the atmosphere.