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atmosphere

Gases and plasmas – introduction

Article

Gases and plasmas – introduction

We live in a gaseous atmosphere and are influenced by its composition, behaviour and structure. Use is made of gas ...

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Gaseous atmosphere

Article

Gaseous atmosphere

The Earth’s atmosphere is a layer of gases held close to its surface by gravity. It plays a crucial role ...

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Space weather

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Space weather

Each day, we consciously experience atmospheric weather, driven by radiation from the Sun. In addition, we are mostly unknowingly subjected ...

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Greenhouse gases and the atmosphere

Article

Greenhouse gases and the atmosphere

We hear a lot about greenhouse gases – and the huge amounts that humans are responsible for pumping into the ...

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Our atmosphere and climate – introduction

Article

Our atmosphere and climate – introduction

Aotearoa New Zealand’s natural environment has been shaped by climate. It has influenced both the physical environment and the plants ...

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Diagram with types of atmospheric tohu

Article

Climate change and the carbon cycle – kuputaka

This resource contains kuputaka Māori mo āhuarangi hurihuri a hurihanga waro – reo Māori words associated with climate change and the carbon cycle. Māori developed detailed ...

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Looking down at the Baring Head air monitoring station, NZ

Article

The carbon cycle and climate change – key terms

Climate literacy as well as basic scientific literacy are needed to understand the complexity of Earth systems and climate change. Knowledge of key vocabulary, scientific symbols ...

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Article

Our air 2024

Every day, adults take around 20,000 breaths of air. Children, who breathe faster, take even more. The air we breathe plays an important role in both ...

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Climate change and impacts on biodiversity

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Climate change and impacts on biodiversity

Aotearoa New Zealand is home to an amazing diversity of living things, many of which are endemic – only found here. Nowhere else on the planet ...

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Earth systems and climate change

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Earth systems and climate change

The Earth is a dynamic system – a combination of interrelated, interacting parts that form a collective entity. From a scientific point of view, the Earth ...

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<i>Our atmosphere and climate 2023</i>

Article

Our atmosphere and climate 2023

Our atmosphere and climate 2023 – an environmental report produced by the Ministry for the Environment and Stats NZ – begins with this whakatauākī: Tiakina te ...

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Methane – a greenhouse gas

Article

Methane – a greenhouse gas

Methane comprises just 0.00018% of the Earth’s atmosphere – so why are we concerned about it? Dr Sara Mikaloff-Fletcher explains how the majority of methane emissions ...

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Ururangi – air, winds and the sky

Article

Ururangi – air, winds and the sky

Ururangi is a whetū in the Matariki cluster. It is connected to atmospheric conditions, winds and the sky. Ururangi means ‘winds of the sky’ and is ...

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Waipunarangi – rains, frosts and climate

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Waipunarangi – rains, frosts and climate

Waipunarangi is a whetū in the Matariki cluster. It is the star connected to the rains and other atmospheric conditions. Waipunarangi – water that pools in ...

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Ko e ha ‘a e feliuliuaki ‘a e ‘ea?

Article

Ko e ha ‘a e feliuliuaki ‘a e ‘ea?

Koe feliuliuaki ‘a e ‘ea ‘oku ‘uhinga ia ki he ngaahi liliu kehekehe ‘oku hoko ki he kalaimeiti (Churchward, 1959) ‘o e fo’i mamani, pea koe ...

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Trees, seas and soil

Article

Trees, seas and soil

This Connected article starts with the question "What kind of sink can't be used to wash the dishes but can be grown in your garden?" The ...

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Dairy farming and the nitrogen cycle

Article

Dairy farming and the nitrogen cycle

Understanding the nitrogen cycle – the transformations that nitrogen undergoes as it moves between the atmosphere, the land and living things – is an important part ...

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COVID-19 and greenhouse gas emissions

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COVID-19 and greenhouse gas emissions

The world saw striking images in the months of March and April 2020 as countries dealt with a pandemic. Some metropolitan areas experienced clear skies as ...

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Aotearoa’s contributions to climate emissions

Article

Aotearoa’s contributions to climate emissions

Emissions are the release of greenhouse gases from human activities. They can be estimated in different ways, including production-based and consumption-based approaches. The production-based approach counts ...

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Human contributions to climate change – how we know

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Human contributions to climate change – how we know

Earth’s climate is changing. We are able to directly observe this as glaciers melt and disappear and Arctic sea ice declines. The Earth’s average temperature is ...

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Climate connections – why climate change matters

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Climate connections – why climate change matters

Earth is a dynamic system, made up of four central components known as subsystems – the hydrosphere, geosphere, atmosphere and biosphere. These subsystems are interconnected by ...

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What is climate change?

Article

What is climate change?

Climate change is defined as a long-term change to the Earth’s climate. But what does this mean? To understand climate change, we need to understand what ...

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Weather and climate

Article

Weather and climate

Although weather and climate are closely related, they are not the same thing. The chief difference between weather and climate is time. Although climate and weather ...

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Sun, wind or rain?

Article

Sun, wind or rain?

This article explores the role of observation in weather prediction. It provides several examples of natural patterns and how they help to predict or explain the ...

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Sensing data

Article

Sensing data

This level 4 Connected article provides an introduction to big data and the internet of things and how they are used to address air pollution in ...

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Global action

Article

Global action

Climate change is a complex topic, and this article breaks key aspects down into accessible, bite-sized sections. It concisely explains some of the science ideas associated ...

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Captured in ice

Article

Captured in ice

Join Nancy Bertler, a glaciologist who collects ice cores, to learn how the Earth’s climate has changed over time. This information helps her and other scientists ...

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