Explain climate feedbacks by matching a positive feedback with a negative feedback.

Explain climate feedbacks by matching a positive feedback with a negative feedback.

• A. Positive feedback amplifies warming (ice-albedo); Negative feedback dampens changes (more plant growth removing CO2).
• B. Positive feedback dampens warming; Negative feedback amplifies warming.
• C. Both feedbacks always occur with equal strength.
• D. Only positive feedback exists in climate.

Answer: (A)

Climate feedbacks are processes that either amplify or dampen changes in the climate. A positive feedback speeds up warming because the initial change triggers further changes that reinforce it. Ice-albedo is a clear example: as ice melts, darker surfaces absorb more solar energy, leading to more warming and even more melting. A negative feedback, on the other hand, works to counteract the initial change. Plant growth can act as this kind of response by removing CO2 from the atmosphere when CO2 levels rise, which helps dampen warming. So the best match shows a positive feedback that amplifies warming and a negative feedback that dampens changes. The other statements either flip these roles, claim they always balance equally, or suggest only one type exists, which doesn’t reflect how the climate system actually works.

Climate feedbacks are processes that either amplify or dampen changes in the climate. A positive feedback speeds up warming because the initial change triggers further changes that reinforce it. Ice-albedo is a clear example: as ice melts, darker surfaces absorb more solar energy, leading to more warming and even more melting. A negative feedback, on the other hand, works to counteract the initial change. Plant growth can act as this kind of response by removing CO2 from the atmosphere when CO2 levels rise, which helps dampen warming. So the best match shows a positive feedback that amplifies warming and a negative feedback that dampens changes. The other statements either flip these roles, claim they always balance equally, or suggest only one type exists, which doesn’t reflect how the climate system actually works.