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The oceans
Science, Maths & Technology

The oceans

...solar energy, the warmer the water (Figure 9). [Described image] Figure 9 The global sea-surface temperature in January 2014 recorded by satellite. Areas of uniform sea-surface temperature are the same colour and the scale is in °C. In general, the sea-surface temperature (SST) is colder at high latitudes and warmer in the mid-latitude and equatorial regions, but there...
View course The oceans
Level 2: Intermediate 15 hrs
The science of nuclear energy
Science, Maths & Technology

The science of nuclear energy

...energy that your body can use as ‘fuel’. Solar energy, from the Sun, is used in photosynthesis by plants to create chemical energy that enables the plants to grow and to perhaps produce food for the previous process! The standard unit that energy is measured in is the joule (J). To get an idea of the size of the joule, look at these examples: energy......
View course The science of nuclear energy
Level 1: Introductory 12 hrs
Climate change: island life in a volatile world
Society, Politics & Law

Climate change: island life in a volatile world

...solar energy which has previously passed through the atmosphere and been reradiated back from the earth's surface. This has the effect of keeping the planet many degrees warmer than would otherwise be expected from the amount of solar energy coming in. There is strong evidence that this natural greenhouse effect is now being enhanced as a result of human activity. Burning...
View course Climate change: island life in a volatile world
Level 2: Intermediate 15 hrs
Seeing the light
Science, Maths & Technology

Seeing the light

...energy calculations about solar panels...Seeing the light: 1 Light - We will begin by watching the first part of a specially commissioned Open University/Channel 4 television programme about our homes which features The Times architecture critic Tom Dyckhoff. The programme, The Secret Life of Buildings, looks at many different aspects of architecture and design in...
View course Seeing the light
Level 1: Introductory 10 hrs
Climate change and renewable energy
Nature & Environment

Climate change and renewable energy

...energy flows from the interior of the Earth, but is tiny compared to the solar contribution.) The incoming energy is transmitted across space by solar radiation (the Sun’s rays), and when it reaches the Earth it is transferred to its surface, or to your skin which, as you will know from experience, warms. All bodies give off heat in the form of infra-red radiation that...
View course Climate change and renewable energy
Level 1: Introductory 8 hrs
Financial methods in environmental decisions
Nature & Environment

Financial methods in environmental decisions

...solar energy absorbed by the Earth’s surface a little more than half goes into latent heat, which is heat absorbed by water because of its transformation from a liquid to a vapour. When these molecules condense back into a liquid, usually higher in the atmosphere, they release that energy back into the atmosphere as local warming...Financial methods in environmental...
View course Financial methods in environmental decisions
Level 3: Advanced 10 hrs
Introducing key global development challenges
Society, Politics & Law

Introducing key global development challenges

...solar energy and caused new ways of life to emerge. We recognise this as a transformation – a qualitative change to something that didn’t exist before. Societies and cultures change continuously in small ways and we cannot speak of such quantitative changes as transformation. Transformation is, rather, a major qualitative change so that we recognise that a different...
View course Introducing key global development challenges
Level 3: Advanced 6 hrs
An introduction to floodplain meadows
Nature & Environment

An introduction to floodplain meadows

...solar energy being trapped. The shift in climate has serious implications both for living things directly, such as plants dying in droughts, and for their habitats (living space) indirectly, such as woodland being flattened by high winds. Floodplain meadows also face these challenges. However, they also show particular resilience to droughts and flooding. Moreover, they...
View course An introduction to floodplain meadows
Level 1: Introductory 3 hrs