Coal Camp in WV, Osage

Osage, WV is located in Monongalia County, accross from Morgantown. The current population of the town is 365, the majority of which are white, about 35 African Americans, and 4 Hispanics. When the mine was in operation the owners were Brady-Warner Coal Corp. or Osage Coal Co. The mine is located in the Faremount coalfield.

Surface Mining

The three types of surface mining include, Strip mining, contour mining, and mountaintop removal. Stip mining is used when the coal seam is close to the surface and the top soild is stripped away to reach the coal underneith.Contour mining follows the contour of the terrain leaving terraces in the side of the mountain. Mountaintop removal is the most contreversal. The top of the mountain is removed to reach the horizontal coal seam underneath.  The advantages of surface mining are; it is more cost efficient than other mining methods, mine explosion are more rare, workers are less likely to die from toxic fumes, therefore more safer then underground mining methods. Disadvantages include:  overburden being placed in lower elevations and filles in "holes" or valleys, which completely changes the terrain. This effects the habitats of the regional flora and fauna,destroying the surrounding ecosystems. Surface mining also contributes to noise, water, and air pollution, which is harmful to everyone involved.

CIte used for research

Coal Formation

     Coal formation is a process that takes millions of years and only a few to mine. Coal is actually vegetation that has been smothered in a swamp like condition for years that could not decompose due to the lack of oxygen. This is the formation of what we call peat. As time goes on due to the pressure on top,the peat slowly turns it into Lignite, which is a soft brown coal. From there the pressure turns the lignite into Bituminous, then into Anthracite. As time goes on and the pressure continues to grow greater and greater the coal becomes harder and can burn at higher heat due to the lack of oxygen and the abundance of CO2. From there we use the coal to gather natural gasses used to produce energy, the leftover product is know as coke.

Analyzing Graphs

To conclude, the AOT function stays pretty close to the temperature level recorded by the earth science classes. AOT  increases and decreases in the same pattern as the temperatures recorded in November and December. However the percent transmission, does not closely resemble the temperature for the month. The percent transmission follows the same type of function, but moves with much greater difference such as 11/28/2012, the temperature slightly increases, but the percentage drastically increases.  P.s. Your vitriolic humor keeps my day interesting and the smart people in top.

Aerosols effect on the climate change

Aersols are the tiny little particles of matter that are suspened in the air. Most aerosols are naturally occuring through events such as volcano eruptions, dust storms, forest fires and even sea spray. Humans accout for about  10 percent of the aerosols in the air. We put them their mostly by the burning of fossil fuels and the movement of natural surface covers. Scientest aren't really sure if the aerosols are warming or cooling our plant. For the most part they seem to be cooling though. When the aerosol are suspended in the air they are used as a shield for the earth, all the tiny particles reflect the sun's radiation back out into the atmosphere. Plus the aerosols help clouds form by allowing water particles to atach and form clouds which also helps the earth stay cool.

Article used:
Aerosols & Climate Change

Aerosols

 

                Aerosols or particulate are a billion tiny particles, liquid and solid, floating in the atmosphere. Some of these aerosols are naturally occurring in the atmosphere. Some of the natural sources of aerosols include particles released from volcanos when they erupt, salt from the oceans, or from dust from dry areas being blown into the air by the wind. Mankind also emits aerosols from cars, power plants and factories that burn fossil fuels. 

                Here on earth aerosols can change climate. Aerosols help clouds to form in the sky and the more clouds there are in the sky the more the climate is affected. Certain types of aerosols scatter or absorb sunlight, which also affects the climate. Aerosols in our atmosphere are actually dangerous to human life. When the microscopic particles get into a person’s lungs it can make them very ill.  Too many aerosols can limit visibility, causing a haze throughout the world

The life of the Ozone

Ozone is found in two places in our atmosphere. One form of Ozone is high in the sky and protects us from the harmful UV rays sent by the sun. The other type of Ozone is called surface Ozone and it resides on the surface of the earth in the form of smog. The troposphere, or surface Ozone, is created by a reaction between oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOC).

The Ozone that is up in the atmosphere helps enable life on earth by protecting earth’s surface from the harmful UV rays projected by the sun. The threatening aspect of the Ozone is the surface Ozone. The surface Ozone is chemicals put there by man.  The surface Ozone if concentrated enough can ultimately cause lung problems for anyone who breathes the chemicals. The surface Ozone is not emitted into the air naturally, rather it is created by chemical reactions between the NOx and VOC.

The surface Ozone can cause many health problems, mostly to the respiratory system. Surface Ozone can decrease lung function and repeated high exposure can cause lung tissue to scar. Children are at greater risk than adults for lung problems. Their lungs are still developing and the Ozone can cause permanent damage for the rest of their lives.

            The Ozone should be studied greatly by scientists. The Ozone is what protects and harms us, it’s not going away and the more we know about it the longer the safe Ozone can be preserved and the sooner we can cut back the surface Ozone that is so harmful to our heath