The Effects Of Climate Change

Climate change is real, and that is a fact. Climate change refers to the multitude of changes happening to Earth, including global warming and the repercussions of it. Global warming is the long-term warming of our planet. Climate change is real, although some groups disagree, and there are many ways we can avoid further climate change.

Scientific evidence has shown that climate change is unquestionably real and human-induced. This conclusion comes from research on global temperature, ice sheets, and ocean acidification. Research has proven that global temperature is on the rise. In fact, the temperatures in 2015 were the highest on modern record. Additionally, ice sheets in Antarctica and Greenland have significantly shrunken in mass. Ocean

Acidity is caused by the surface of the ocean absorbing huge amounts of carbon dioxide produced by humans. The amount of carbon dioxide emissions that is absorbed by the ocean rises each year. Climate change, and its consequences, are mostly caused by the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect refers to the process of greenhouse gases—like water vapor, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane—becoming trapped in the atmosphere and absorbing heat, thus warming the Earth. These gases come from mass livestock manure, waste decomposition in landfills, and fossil fuel combustion, all of which are strictly human creations. The effects of climate change are in the evidence. Climbing temperatures, melting ice sheets, and ocean acidification are all used to prove the existence of climate change because they are the clear effects of it. If climate change continues, effects in the future will include still-rising temperatures, high-frequency and more severe hurricanes, an ice-free arctic, and more. Each of these consequences will have ramifications of their

While it is true that there are natural phenomena that can produce similar effects as climate change, the effects are not enough to cause the level of climate change that is happening. Naturally occurring events that can cause similar effects include variations in sunlight and volcanic activity. In fact, before the Industrial Revolution, these occurrences were what altered the climate, albeit minimally. The term ‘variations in sunlight’ refers to the changes in the sun and where it hits the atmosphere. There are minute wobbles in the Earth’s orbit that are changed when and where sunlight hits the Earth’s surface. Additionally, the sun itself sometimes has variations in the amount of solar energy it produces, effecting the amount that the Earth receives. Another way that climate is naturally effected is by volcanic activity. Volcanoes erupt and send ashes into the air. The ashes reflect sunlight, brighten the planet, and that effects the climate. Volcanoes have also increased greenhouse gases throughout millions of years, in the very long ago past. Science has determined that the level of climate change currently happening cannot be caused primarily by natural events. So, why do people continue to deny the truth of human-caused climate change? The majority of this group is Republican. Republican