Is the atmosphere of our planet warming consistently, and at a more rapid pace than ever before, and is it being caused by human consumption? This question is the basis for the dispute on Global warming. It is this century’s largest debate. There are scientists, politicians, and civilians on both sides of the debate. Scientists have determined that the Earth has cooled off and warmed up several times over its long history. I do not believe that a reasonable person would deny that there is the potential for the Earth to repeat this pattern at some point in the future. The real point of contention is then in reference to the cause. Some scientists believe they have found a correlation between an increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and a link to the hypothesis once known as global warming, and now called climate change. There are scientists who reverently believe that fifty percent or more of the rapid increase in surface temperatures of the Earth are caused by humans. They believe that the increase in our usage of fossil fuels to drive our advanced economies has caused the levels of carbon dioxide to proliferate out of control. In order to comprehend the debate, an understanding of the term green house effect is required. There are gasses in our atmosphere that trap heat in, and don’t allow it to escape into the cold depths of space. Without the green house effect the earth’s surface temperature would hover below the freezing mark. This occurs much the same way a green house helps plants to grow in colder climates. The Earth is constantly bombarded by the sun’s rays that permeate through our atmosphere to warm it. Some of this intense heat is absorbed by the Earth’s surface and some of it is reflected and returned bac... ... middle of paper ... ... ranging back eight hundred years. Her most recent focus has been assisting with planning for future droughts. Works Cited (i ) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/globalwarming/instrumental.html (ii) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/globalwarming.html (ii) Wall Street Journal online http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204301404577171531838421366.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_LEADTop (iv) British Antarctic Survey http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/bas_research/science_briefings/icecorebriefing.php (v) United Nations Environmental Programme http://www.unep.org/rms/en/Projects/Project_Coralreefs/index.asp (vi) Time for Change http://timeforchange.org/main-cause-of-global-warming-solutions (vii) University of Arizona http://www.environment.arizona.edu/connie-woodhouse
For years to come there will always be a speculation on whether the climate change has really taken place or not. Many believe that large companies launched this topic in order to benefit from it in profit, as there are also those who are convinced that this are consequences that have emerged from human mistakes in understanding the environment. As humans are struggling to trust one another whether it is just a big conspiracy or not or environment changing itself, we are slowly starting to feel the effects of climate change. Because of the gasses (CO2) that are in the air, atmosphere is getting warmer, thereby triggering the Greenhouse effect. Almost 70% of emitted gasses in air are CO2, which leads us to believe that this is the main cause of Global Warming. Since it is billions and billions of metric tons per year that are being released in air, many scientists conclude that temperature will most likely be more higher in twenty years from now, than it was in near past.
Since measurements began in 1958 -- and it can be assumed to have been the case since the industrial revolution -- emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere has risen steadily as a result of the burning of fossil fuels (Quay, pp 2344). Although there is much argument over the implications of increasing carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere, there are several points that almost all scientists would agree on: firstly, carbon dioxide acts to absorb radiated heat; if present in our atmosphere will do just that to some extent. Second, the concentration of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere is rising. Third, the temperature of the planet is rising - although the amount of this increase and the causes of this rise are subject to disagreement (Philander, pp 193).
The present climate change is mostly human induced; the increase in CO2 is mainly because of human activities. Activities like changes in land use pattern, deforestation, land clearing, agriculture, and other activities that have all led to a rise in the emission of carbon dioxide.
First, during the last few decades the Earth is experiencing greater rate of rising temperatures due to greenhouse gases that are being produced by human activities rather than because of environmental reasons, such as solar or volcanic activities. In 2006 the President of the National Academy of Sciences stated: “There is no doubt that the Earth is warming,” also he added that people are at least partly responsible for these changes in addition to regular factors (Cicerone, par.4). Natural factors have produced climate fluctuations on Earth for several million years. People have effected an atmosphere of the Earth just for nearly one hundred years, since Industrial Revolution has begun (Revkin 340). Of course, it is unfair to say that global warming is caused entirely by humans. For example, people can not have an impact on the position of Earth in relation to the sun, or on the galactic density, or such nature events as air emissions of volcanic gases. As a result of these environmental factors, Earth usually had higher rates of temperature fluctuations during the previous million years than it has in later centuries. On the other hand, people are responsible for the highest concentration of greenhouse gases during the last 650,000 years in the atmosphere due to industrial manufacturing, driven by the increase in consumer consumption (Lindsey, par.
Most climate scientists agree that the main cause of global climate change is the human expansion of the greenhouse effect. This is the global warming that results when the atmosphere traps heat radiating from Earth toward space (climate.nasa.gov). The main gases that contribute to the greenhouse effect include water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and chlorofluorocarbons (climate.nasa.gov). Human activities are changing the natural greenhouse effect. The burning of fossil fuels like coal and oil has increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere (climate.nasa.gov). Carbon dioxide levels have increased from 280 parts per million to 379 parts per million in the last 150 years due to human act...
Earth’s carbon levels have followed a natural cycle throughout the past 800,000 years where the carbon dioxide concentration varied from 180 ppm (parts per million) and 280 ppm which resulted in several changes in the environment.. In the grand scheme of Earth, these changes are miniscule and have stayed within the natural cycle. But when looking through the eyes of humans, these changes are drastic causing ice ages, draughts, and rain for years (Goldstein 6). During the last century carbon dioxides levels in the atmosphere have become significantly larger than they ever have in the past 800,000 years. Today these levels are at 390 ppm and show no signs of stopping which will cause temperatures to rise because carbon is a greenhouse gas. When a greenhouse gas, such as carbon dioxide or water vapor are present in the atmosphere, they absorb the heat that the Earth is giving off, creating a thermal blanket over Earth trapping in heat (Houghton 20).
Although Al Gore has proven to be both a capable politician and philanthropist, he has no credibility in regards to the scientific field he seems so concerned to inform the public about. Interestingly enough, some of the mistakes our esteemed presenter made were crucial details that weaken the anthropogenic global warming argument. In the film, Gore mistakenly asserts “that in each of the last four interglacial warm periods, changes in carbon dioxide concentration caused changes in temperature” (35 Inconvenient Truths: The Errors in Al Gore's Movie) . In reality it’s the opposite, because temperature is the factor that affects carbon dioxide levels. “Carbon dioxide,” Gore asserted, “is pollution.” That statement not only proves to be misleading, but also ignorant. Carbon dioxide is a food source for plants and a source of natural nutrition. Plants take in this carbon dioxide and in turn release oxygen, a component that all living species, including humans, breathe. In fact, “well-managed forests, such as those of the United States, are growing at record rates [due to] the extra carbon dioxide in the atmosphere [, which] is feeding the trees” (35 Inconvenient Truths: The Errors in Al Gore's Movie). If one were to look at the concentration of carbon dioxide throughout the span of Geological Time, one would notice that carbon dioxide levels were significantly higher than present levels. Notably, the University of California estimates carbon dioxide levels to be approximately twenty times greater in concentration than present levels. This further strengthens the idea that carbon dioxide levels have existed at higher rates than before, so there is nothing “unnatural” or “man-made” in regards to carbon dioxide levels rising to higher l...
Global warming, its causes and effects, is one of the most controversial and intensely debated subjects in today’s society. Many scientists on both sides of the argument agree; Earth is definitely going through some rapid climate changes. However, in spite of billions of dollars spent in research, we still have many important questions unanswered. Are these climate changes caused by human-influence or are these changes occurring as part of the Earth’s natural evolution?
Earth’s climate is determined by the physics and chemistry of its atmosphere. Earth’s atmosphere consists of four layers; troposphere which is closest to earth, stratosphere, mesosphere, and thermosphere. Hardy says, “During the past 100 years we humans, as a result of burning coal, oil, and gas and clearing forests, have greatly changed the chemical composition of the thin atmospheric layer.” There is more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere due to burning fossil fuels. The atmosphere is made up of many gases such as nitrogen, oxygen, and argon. It also consists of trace gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, chlorofluorocarbons and, ozone. The trace gases have the greatest effect on our climate (Hardy 5). Up to a certain level, these gases help to keep the planet warm by absorbing certain infrared wavelengths, so that there can be life on the planet. Thus, they trap heat in the troposphere and stop it from escaping to space (Hardy 7). Therefore, the greater amount of greenhouse gases, the more heat trapped in the atmosphere. Earth’s temperature is increasing due to increased levels of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide released into the air from burning fossil fuels. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 2001 report projects “global average surface temperature increases ranging from 1.4 to 5.8 degrees
The Global Warming Debate encompasses one of the most complex systems in our natural world, the Earth’s atmosphere, so it is very important to understand the basics. In the book, The Science and Politics of Global Climate Change, climate is defined as “The climate of a place, a region, or the Earth as a whole, is the average over time of meteorological conditions that occur there – the average weather” (Dessler & Parson, 2010, p. 7). The source of energy for the Earth’s climate is electromagnetic radiation, more specifically the sun. This means that the sun is the main driver behind the climate, unless something else acts upon it. According to Environmentalists, humans are changing the climate by our actions. The official definition of manmade climate change is given by The United Nations’ report “Framework Commission on Climate Change”, as “change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods” (Bell, 2011, p. 45). According to environmentalists, the main way humans are changing the climate is by the Green House Effect. The Green ...
According to Mr. Steffen, “The primary cause of the observed changes in the Earth’s climate are human activities—mainly the burning of fossil fuels” (Steffen, 2013). The process of burning fossil fuel unleashes a huge amount of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide, to the atmosphere, disturbing the balance of greenhouse gases in the nature. As stated by Slaght, “The accumulation of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere due to human activities will change th...
An English major with a minor in Meteorology, I have a huge passion in learning about the weather. I love doing research on all aspects of the weather, but one topic has remained controversial for years and that is the cause of global warming. I decided to do some research on the issue in hopes of coming up with some type of conclusion based on the facts that I am able to find. The question always arises as to whether humans are to blame for our current global warming. Do humans in fact pose a threat to the global warming crisis and are they to blame for the slow increase in temperature of the earths atmosphere? Before one can begin to argue the facts whether or not humans have an influence in the condition of our atmosphere, one must first learn exactly what global warming is.
There are two main human causes of Earth’s global warming and climate change. The first of which being the greenhouse effect. According to Brian Black in the book Global Warming, the greenhouse effect is the tendency of Earth’s atmosphere to admit the Sun’s radiation but partly retain the low-frequency heat radiation (3). Human activity has changed our greenhouse, especially over the course of the last 150 years due to industrialization. By the burning of fossil fuels, such as coal, petroleum, and oil, carbon dioxide is released into our atmosphere, and heat is trapped in. These gases are typically
Transportation sectors like cars, airplanes, motorcycles, and equipment with engines produce carbon dioxide which affects the atmosphere. The number one contributor of carbon dioxide gas to the atmosphere is fossil fuels. According to the World Watch Institute, humans has increased the amount of carbon released into the atmosphere. The increases rate of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere is around 3.8 yearly (Global Fossil Fuel Consumption Surges). According to an UN report, humans have had an influence on climate change and global warming since the mid- twentieth century. Scientists concluded in the report that the increase of gas emissions is one of the main priority causes of climate change. With that conclusion, they predict the probability of mankind producing climate change is from 95 to 100 percent (UNRIC). Meanwhile nature changes on earth at a steady pace, the heat trapping emissions, also known as greenhouse gases, increasing which causes warming up on the earth as year’s progress. The increase of the greenhouse gases may cause human civilization to experienced hot temperature never
The earth is a complex system, which continues to evolve and change. Climate change and global warming are currently popular in the political agenda. But what does “climate” really mean? The difference between weather and climate can be conveyed in a single sentence: “Climate is what you expect; weather is what you get.” Based on research of the geologic record, we know that climate change has happened throughout Earth's history and at present, ever-increasing evidence points to the roles that humans play in altering Earth systems. The Earth and its atmosphere receive heat energy from the sun; the atmospheric heat budget of the Earth depends on the balance between incoming solar radiation and outgoing radiation from the planet; which has been constant over the last few thousand years. However present evidence seems to suggest that the recent increase in temperature has been brought about by pollution of the atmosphere, in particular the release of huge amounts of carbon dioxide, mostly through Anthropogenic Forcing (human activity) and other various internal and external factors. I...