What Causes Global Warming?

For several decades, scientists have wondered what causes global warming. They looked at a number of things such as the natural cycles and events that influence the climate. Some things they learned that causes global warming include:

- Methane gas release in the areas of the wetlands and arctic tundra. Methane is known as a greenhouse gas that results in heat bring trapped inside the atmosphere.

- Climate change cycle, which tends to occur every 40,000 years.

- Lots of volcano activity causes an increase of greenhouse gases.

- Sunspots

And, while they've looked at the above events and cycles, they noted that the pattern and amount of global warming cannot be explained by them alone. Scientists could only explain that the pattern included human's effect on the greenhouse gases. After all, the human population is growing rapidly, which means they're raising more animals for food and have regular growth in technology.

Now, scientists from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (or IPCC), meet every several years to check on recent scientific findings and put together a report that summarizes everything they've learned about global warming.

Greenhouse Gases Causes Global Warming

Now, one thing scientists have learned on what causes global warming is that there are several kinds of greenhouse gases responsible for the problem. And, humans are largely responsible for these greenhouse gases, emitting them off in a number of ways. Most greenhouse gases come in the form of fossil fuel combustion such as electricity production, cars and factories. The primary cause of global warming, however, is carbon dioxide, which is also known as CO2.

So what causes global warming? Some other causes include methane from agriculture and landfills, fertilizers' nitrous oxide, gases used in industrial processed and refrigeration and deforestation, which leads to CO2.

When people drive their cars, heat homes with either natural gas or oil or use electricity from plants that use coal, they release more heat-trapping gases like CO2 into the environment. Deforestation means there are fewer trees and when there are fewer trees planted, it means less carbon dioxide being changed over into usable oxygen.

The heat-trapping abilities of the different greenhouse gases vary. Some tend to trap more*heat than carbon dioxide does. One molecule of methane generates over 20 times the warming of a CO2 molecule. Nitrous oxide is nearly 300 times stronger than carbon dioxide. Chlorofluorocarbons, which are banned in most of the world due to causing the degradation of the ozone layer, can trap heat more than a thousand times more than carbon dioxide. However, since their concentration is lower than CO2, they don't add a lot of warmth to the environment.

When scientists get together, they tend to converse about the different greenhouse gases and how their equivalent amount to carbon dioxide. Since the early 1990s, annual emissions of CO2 has risen to around six billion metric tons or a 20 percent increase.

Bear in mind that in the industrial age, carbon dioxide emissions increased by approximately 31 percent. And, during the same time, there was a 151 percent increase in environmental methane, which came from agricultural activities like growing rice or raising cattle.

What causes global warming is the increase of greenhouse gases because more heat becomes trapped in the atmosphere and is not able to escape into space. This rise in the amount of trapped heat will lead to changes in the environment, altering weather patterns, speeding up species extension, influencing the seasons, causes coastal flooding and resulting in more severe storms.

No doubt greenhouse gases have a direct impact on what causes global warming. So, it's up the humans all around the world to ban together and reduce the release of greenhouse gases to save the environment... and the world!

Global Warming - Purveyor of Death

Plants, trees, animals, sea, earth, rocks, sand, water, air, wind etc all these are part of nature. Nature is something that can not be created artificially and even existed when there was no human life. Nature is referred to as the natural surroundings comprising of animal and plant kingdom.

Nature provides us many resources and we are dependent upon them for our continued existence. Plants and trees are wonderful gift of nature. These provide us not only oxygen but also helps us fighting the growing demons known as pollution and global warming. Trees are responsible for absorbing carbon dioxide (CO2) and emitting oxygen into the atmosphere due to the process of photosynthesis. This unique property makes trees real saviors of life fighting against purveyor of death.

Global warming is referred to as the increased earth's average temperature.

Effects and causes of Global Warming:
Spreading of Diseases - Warm temperature is beneficial for microorganism, germs and viruses to survive and to multiply. As a result of global warming diseases are spreading day by day.

Increased Hurricanes - Average temperature of oceans is increasing like anything and this result in increasing probability of powerful, frequent and grievous Hurricanes.

Drought - Increasing temperature results in increasing the probability of drought and serious heat waves. The day is not far when there will not be any water left because of this day by day increasing rate of global warming.

Accumulation of hazardous gases in the atmosphere - Excessive releasing of green house gases is one of the main reasons of Global warming. Some of the green house gases are CO2, N2O and methane. Accumulation of these harmful gases is increasing due to the recent industrialization and unnecessary deforestation.

Hostile world for future generation - As a result of this increasing demon, the world will turn hostile for the future generation. Global warming is badly affecting not only earth but also affecting the whole ecosystem.

Ways to avoid Global warming:
Avoid using perfumes rich in CFCs - CFC is Chlorofluorocarbon and is responsible for depletion of ozone layer. Increased use of CFCs results in increasing global warming.

Make use of solar energy - Start using solar energy appliances and equipments because these are beneficial in decreasing pollution and helps saving non-renewable resources.

Grow More Trees - Trees play an important role in saving earth from warming and soil erosion. We should grow more trees in order to keep environment safe and secure.

Organic Food - Consumption of organic food helps in decreasing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Say no to Polyethene Bags- Polythene is non-recyclable material and is responsible for increasing pollution. Start using paper bags, cloth bags or bags made from recyclable material in order to save environment.

Mitigation Measures For Global Warming

1. Mitigation of global warming involves taking actions aimed at reducing the extent of global warming. Scientific consensus on global warming together with the fear of climate transitions is leading to increased efforts to develop new technologies and sciences, to address the issue of global warming. At the core of most proposals is the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by reducing energy use and switching to cleaner energy sources. Responding to the challenges of controlling global warming requires fundamental changes in energy production, transportation, industry, government policies, and development strategies around the world. These changes would take time. The challenge today is to manage the impacts that cannot be avoided while taking steps to prevent severe impacts in the future. Some of the mitigating measure is appended below.

a. Forests provide many social, economic and environmental benefits. In addition to timber and paper products, forests provide wildlife habitat, recreational opportunities, prevent soil erosion and flooding, help provide clean air and water and contain tremendous biodiversity. Forests are also an important defense against global climate change. Through the process of photosynthesis, forests produce life-supporting oxygen and consume huge amounts of carbon dioxide, which help the most in mitigation of global warming.

b. Hydro-electric power by means of dams is regarded as a relatively cleaner source of energy because it emits fewer greenhouse gases than thermal power plants. Greenhouse gases contribute to global warming and climate change, and for many environmentalists, the buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is the most important environmental issue.

c. The scientific study of the physical, chemical, and biological aspects of the world oceans is called oceanography. Greater knowledge of climatic variations can be attained to describe how the biological productivity in the sea is controlled. A lot of carbon dioxide could be removed from the atmosphere if significant amounts of carbon dioxide could be sucked up by tiny floating marine plants in the vast oceans. Oceans receive considerable sunlight and have an abundance of the nitrogen and phosphorus compounds that usually support the growth of such plants in the greenish waters of the coastal ocean. In an experiment, sea-water containing dissolved iron was pumped to a small area resulting in growth of small marine plants.

d. One way to keep carbon dioxide emissions from reaching the atmosphere is to preserve and growing more trees. Trees, especially young and fast-growing ones, soak up a great deal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Slowing the rate of deforestation and planting new trees can help in neutralizing the expansion of greenhouse gases. In most cases, the process of carbon capture would involve transporting the gas in compressed form to suitable locations for underground storage. Deep ocean waters could also absorb a great deal of carbon dioxide, although the environmental effects may be harmful to ocean life. The feasibility and environmental effects of these options are under study by international teams.

e. The total worldwide consumption of fossil fuels is increasing by several percent annually. Newer technologies for energy resources may help offset these effects. Significant reductions in carbon dioxide emissions can only be achieved by switching away from fossil-fuel energy sources.

i. Nuclear power plants release no carbon dioxide at all, but nuclear energy is controversial for reasons of safety, security and the high costs of nuclear waste disposal.

ii. Solar Power, Wind Power and Hydrogen Fuel Cells can be alternative means of energy emit no greenhouse gases. These energy sources can be practical and low-polluting alternatives to fossil fuels.Other alternatives include fuels made from plants, such as biodiesel (made from used and new vegetable oil) and ethanol (a plant-based gasoline additive). Use of these fuels can help reduce total carbon dioxide emissions from automobiles. The hybrid electric vehicle (HEV), which uses both an electric motor and a gasoline or diesel engine, emits less carbon dioxide than conventional automobiles.

f. Urban planning also has an effect on use of energy. Inefficient use of land practices have increased infrastructure costs as well as the amount of energy needed for transportation, community services, and buildings. Efficient planning will serve to reduce energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions. Planning and the concentration of housing within walking distance of town centers and transport will reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

g. Emissions from housing are substantial.New buildings using passive solar building design can be made more efficient through the use of insulation, high-efficiency appliances (particularly hot water heaters and furnaces), double or triple glazed gas-filled windows, external window shades, and building orientation and site. Renewable heat sources such as geothermal power and passive solar energy reduce the amount of greenhouse gasses emitted. This saves energy because it cools buildings and reduces the urban heat island effect thus reducing the use of air conditioning.

h. Development of new technologies, such as hydrogen cars, may reduce the consumption of petroleum and emissions of carbon dioxide. A shift from air and transport to electric rail would reduce emissions significantly. Increased use of bio-fuels will also reduce emissions. For electric vehicles, the reduction of carbon emissions will improve further.

i. The population explosion is a fundamental factor that has led to global warming. Proposed measures include improving access to family planning and reproductive health care and information, public awareness about the consequences of continued population growth, and improving access of women to education and economic opportunities.

j. There is a requirement to launch a media campaign at national level through print and electronic media for awareness of the masses regarding hazards of Global Warming and importance of growing trees.

k. Rules and regulations regarding setting up and operation of industries already exist. There is a dire need that industrial sector be forced by the concerned agencies, to follow the rules with letter and spirit regarding environment friendly policies.

2. There is a need to secure our future from the hazards of environmental changes faced by the present world. The mitigation efforts for the reduction of Global Warming would help in making prosperous nation besides a healthy atmosphere for our next generations. The most basic question as to who would take the first step is now beyond discussion due to obvious scenery of consequences. So pro-active policy at each tier is mandatory and should become our moral obligation towards better and prosperous future.

Global Warming is resulting in increased temperatures, drying up water sources, sudden and unpredictable natural calamities; resulting in loss of millions of lives every decade, which should act as a wake-up call and as a group or at an individual level we all must try to adopt applicable mitigation measures and this is only possible if we understand the core issue and severity of its far reaching implications.