Twenty thousand years ago, during the height of the most recent glacial period, ice sheets stretched from New York state across the Great Lakes to Wisconsin northward through most of Canada (Schneider 39). Mile-high domes of ice tied up so much fresh water that the oceans were some 100 meters lower than today. On a global basis, the world warmed up some five degrees Celsius from the beginning of the ice age’s rapid retreat over 15,000 years ago (39). The large and rapid climatic change affected the atmosphere, temperature, and water cycles. Research shows that planet Earth is in fact still warming. Senator Al Gore says this about global warming:
“You see that pale, blue dot? That’s us. Everything that has ever happened in all of human history, has happened on that pixel. All the triumphs and all the tragedies, all the wars, all the famines, all the major advances…it’s our home. And that is what is at stake, our ability to live on planet Earth, to have a future as a civilization. I believe this is a moral issue. It is your time to seize this issue. It is our time to rise again to secure our future” (An Inconvenient Truth).
Climatologists have discovered that global warming has occurred since the late 1800’s (Mastrandrea 232). Global warming is an average increase in temperatures near Earth’s surface, including the lowest layer of the atmosphere (“Back to Basics” 3). The terms “global warming” and “climate change” are used interchangeably. According to the National Academy of Sciences, “the phrase ‘climate change’ is growing in preferred use to ‘global warming’ because it helps convey that there are [other] changes in addition to rising temperatures.” These other changes include ozone depletion, land usage, and the global environm...
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...he sea, and rising sea levels (“Fight Global Warming” 2). Most scientists think that a warming climate will alter the frequency and severity of extreme temperature events (“Back to Basics” 5).
In the United States, warming is expected to cause a northward shift in storm tracks, resulting in decreases in precipitation in areas such as the Southwest U.S. but increases in many areas to the north and east (“Back to Basics” 5). Because warm sea surface temperature energizes hurricanes, a warming climate is likely to make hurricanes more intense. Future hurricanes will probably have stronger peak winds and increased rainfall (5). There could be wetter subtropical monsoonal rain belts as well (Schneider 107). Rising temperatures will intensify Earth’s water cycle (“Back to Basics” 5). In general, scientists expect increases in heat waves and decreases in cold spells (5).
Global warming is a scientific, political, and controversial topic. Some believe it is catastrophic, a slow moving killer hiding in the shadows. Others do not even think twice about it as they race by in a Hummer. Global warming is the gradual increase of temperature throughout different climates. It is caused by the greenhouse gas effect in which greenhouse gases, like methane and carbon dioxide, reflect sunlight back and forth. This reflected ultraviolet light bounces between the earth and the ozone layer and becomes trapped, resulting in a gradual rise of temperature. Over time, the slow rise of temperature causes new climates throughout the globe. The article “What Megablazes Tell Us About the Fiery Future of Climate Change” by Tim Dickinson
Global warming may also result to an extreme weather apart from cold or heat extremes. For example, hurricane formation. Increase in sea level causes many floods in many places. Another feature of climate change is lightning. According to a study in 2014, a 50 percent increase in the number of lightning strikes in the United States is anticipated in 2100 if worldwide temperatures continue to rise.
“Do we have a choice going forward in our responses to major existential challenges, or does our human nature foretell the outcomes? We do have a choice but my question is if ultimately human nature will win the battle between choice and nature? No matter the choice history will always continue to repeat itself. George Santayana d. said" Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat It." - The Life of Reason Vol.1. Our main challenge is teaching our youth that looking to the future is great but looking into our past is even more important. Climate changes, over use of land and a decrease in resources aren’t anything knew but the way our societies have adapted to react to these changes is what differs. As technology advances so do our approach on handling these existential challenges but with evolution there is always a tradeoff. Those tradeoffs are our choices, we are choosing to sacrifice the lesser for the greater but it’s in our human nature to ignore the signs that there is a problem. We are so dependent on modern technology that we refuse to believe that it could cause any real problems but that’s where we are wrong.
According to Erik Conway of NASA, “Global warming refers to surface temperature increases, while climate change includes global warming and everything else that increasing greenhouse gas amounts will affect” (Conway). Recently the United States has experienced a drop in temperature. This past weekend I was walking with a friend. With nothing to talk about, the awkward silence was finally filled with a comment on the weather. He said, “It’s so incredibly cold! So much for global warming!!” What my friend, nor I at the beginning of the semester, did not understand was that “temperature change itself isn’t the most severe effect of changing climate. Changes to precipitation patterns and sea level are likely to have much greater human impact than the higher temperatures alone” (Conway). Thankfully the national media has begun to increasingly reference the more scientifically significant term: climate change.
Over the last few years almost everyone has heard that the earth is warming. Also, almost everyone has heard the pleas to go green and reduce carbon emissions, led by former Vice-President Al Gore. Even though there is not a truly accurate definition of global warming it can be roughly defined as a rise in average global temperature according to Laurence Pringle’s book Global Warming Assessing the Greenhouse Threat (19). Global Warming Assessing the Greenhouse Threat also bring up that the average temperature data that scientist are using only goes back to 1860 giving scientists today only 150 years of temperature data. Also, with this current warming, even with humans contributing to the rising average global temperature, scientist today do not fully understand all the complexities of the atmosphere (Pringle 19-21). According to another book by Mr. Pringle, Global Warming the Threat of Earth’s Changing Climate, scientists predict global temperatures could rise from two to six degrees Celsius by 2050 (33). Despite these predictions historical and new information show that scientist are incorrect that global temperatures will forever continue to increase. Global warming and the rise in global temperatures is due to humans burning fossil fuels and overconsumption of products, as well as natural cycles changing slightly and other natural phenomenon; however, this warming will eventually lead to global cooling.
The Earth's climate has changed significantly throughout history. In the last 700,000 years there have been seven cycles of glacial advance and retreat. With the abrupt end of the last ice age approximately 7,000 years ago the beginning of the modern climate era was born. In the last century the global sea level has risen 17cm. All three major global surface temperature reconstructions show that Earth has warmed since 1880. Most of this warming has occurred since the 1970s, with the 20 warmest years, having occurred since 1981 and with all 10 of the warmest years occurring in the past 12 years. There is no denying global warming. Once considered a conspiracy theory by the world’s leading governments, industries and populations; global warming
...es an increase in temperature. Increases in temperature can do a lot of damage, even in small increases. Only a few degrees ended the ice age thousands of years ago (Kluger, 2006, p. 319). Another warming like that could have detrimental environmental effects. Changes in temperature will upset water cycles. A warming of a few degrees could cause glaciers and sea ice to melt. This would lead to ocean levels rising and swallowing coastal cities and islands. In order to stop global warming, much has to be done. Although it is very difficult to reverse once the process is started, global warming has to be stopped if we want to live like we are now. Emission of fossil fuels by humans is a big factor in the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Controlling these emissions is one of the first of many steps that we must take in order to combat global warming.
However, climate change is happening. The global average land and sea temperature has increased over the twentieth century, with the North and South Poles being particularly affected (Learmonth, et al., 2006). In turn, this has caused ice cover to decrease and sea levels
Climate change has had many impacts all over the world and evidence of it is very apparent. One example that climate change has impacted the earth is the rising sea levels. Since planet earth is slowly getting warmer by greenhouse gasses, the glaciers and ice sheets around the world are melting, which is adding more water to the oceans. Within the last century, the global water levels have risen by nearly 7 inches. In a quote from “A Student 's Guide” they say,
First of all, as the water temperatures rise, coral bleaching becomes possible and when it becomes too hot, algae is released from the corals, making them fully white. Another consequence of global warming is an increase in droughts. When the temperature is increased for a period of time, the amount of water decreases as wind pressures do the opposite, causing droughts all over the world. Furthermore, when water vapor condenses due to the heat, the surrounding air warms as well, causing hurricanes. As the temperature rises so does the length and strength of the hurricanes. Sea level rising is a consequence that is caused by warmer oceans and the melting of land covered in ice, both primarily caused by global warming. The ocean and atmosphere work side by side and if one’s temperature rises so does the other’s. The ocean temperature continues to rise and the amount of water vapor in oceans increase too as a consequence of global warming. Last but not least, ocean acidification, is the final consequence of global warming in this list. As carbon dioxide levels rise in the atmosphere, pH levels reduce in the ocean, causing ocean acidification and death of fish along with
What is global warming and what does it mean. Global warming is any substantial change in Earth’s climate. Global warming refers to climate change that causes an increase in the average temperature of the lower atmosphere. Global warming can have many different causes, but it is most commonly associated with human interference, specifically the release of excessive amounts of greenhouse gases. Global warming is also known as the greenhouse effects. The increase of human population has affected the world. The growth of our population has increased our use of fuel, land and manufacturing. All of these are causing an increase of emissions to go into the Earth’s atmosphere, which is causing global warming.
There are many causes and consequences of climate change discussed throughout this Encyclical. One of the most important would be the extreme weather. “In recent decades this warming has been accompanied by a constant rise in the sea level and, it would appear, by an increase of extreme weather events, even if a scientifically determined cause
Global warming and global climate change is the study of future increases of temperature across the globe. Studying climate change refers to how the over- all climate will change such as the dry places getting dryer and the wet places getting wetter. Global climate is dependent on “the greenhouse effect a natural process that helps regulate temperature” (Easterling and Karl). In the past few centuries humans have had a monumental effect on increasing of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Climate change is result of the increase amount of the greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere such as methane, carbon dioxide, water vapor, nitrous oxide, and ozone. “Global temperature has rose approximately 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit over
Of all the effects of global warming, the extreme weather that is taking place all over the world is the most obvious one. Global warming will bring more heat waves, drought, fiercer wildfires and stronger hurricanes. “This intensification of weather and climate extremes will be the most visible impact of global warming in our everyday lives” (75 yrs NWF). Due to rising temperatures, places everywhere will be affected as we get more extremely hot summer days and lesser winters. In addition, as these rising temperatures shifts the cycle of rain and increases evaporation, there will be longer and drier droughts which in turn can lower the water supply for life everywhere. Wildfires can turn out to be even more catastrophic due to warmer temperatures and drier areas combined with accumulated levels of fuel loads in the forest which has built up as a result of decades of fire suppression activities. Moreover, stronger hurricanes are also an effect of global warming as sea levels are rising and heavier rains are falling near the coasts. Overall, global warming is bringing climates that are changing real fast.
Climate change and global warming are terms for the observed century-scale rise in the average temperature of the Earth's climate system and its related effects. Over the past 100 years, the global average temperature has increased by approximately 0.68◦C and continues to rise at a rapid rate (Baldo et al., 1998). Scientists name the increase of global temperature as global warming, while climate change can be a more general term that refers to changes in a broad range of climate conditions over time. Many researches mixes them (Weber, 2010). In this essay, climate change and global warming both refer to the same idea that global temperature has increased due to both natural and human activities.