The number of parts that make up the climate machine is enormous. The key components have already been discussed and include: the energy reservoirs, material reservoirs, and biogeochemical cycles.

Critical processes influencing the flow of energy and climate include:

1. radiative processes (scatter, absorption, emission)
2. the conduction/turbulent transfer of heat in soils, oceans and the atmosphere
3. the latent heat properties of water
4. the microphysical behaviour of cloud particles
5. the dynamic features of the oceans and atmospheres including turbulence, convection, jets and waves
6. astronomical processes including the Sun and the processes that control its output and the processes that affect the orbit of the Earth around the Sun.
7. chemical processes regarding the production and destruction of ozone, CO₂ and others.
8. biologic processes that modify certain key components of the climate system