Isotope analysis of water can be used to detect climate chan

Isotope analysis of water can be used to detect climate change. Explain how it could be used Describe the benefits of the analysis.

Solution

1)

Yes. isotope analysis can be useful to detect changes in the climate. The water evoporates in the warmer tropical regions and tend towards poles as water vapor. The air mones from warmer to cooler regions and during this, the water vapor is precipitated. The heavy isotopes contained water vapor like isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen are removed during precipitation more readily then the lighter isotopes. Thus, when water vapor moves toward poles, it is filled with more lighter isotopes than heavier isotopes. The ratio of light and heavy isotopes depend on the climate change. When more water vapor reaches poles, the lighter isotopes are high in concentration than heavy isotopes. Therefore, cooler the climate heavy isotpes are removed from water vapor through precipitation. The analysis of polar ice is useful to detect heavy and light isotopes ratio and thereby detect the climate change.

2)

Analysis of heavy and light isotope ratios change over the geologica time period. Therefore, it is possible to reconstruct the climate change over the years. The climate change detected by isotope analysis can be related to fossil organisms that have lived in the past times at various climatic conditions.