GLOBAL WARMINGAND CLIMATE CHANGE

CMCIES SALVADOR RUEDA MÁLAGA

The Earth’s climate has changed many times during the planet’s history with events ranging from ice to long periods of warmth.

From ice ages to warmth

Firstly, let’s bring forward the fact that the sun radiation comes in and passes through the atmosphere.

Energy emitted by the sun is also called shortwave radiation.

On the one hand, most of this radiation is absorbed by the Earth and warms it.

On the other hand, some energy is radiated back into space by the Earth in form of infrared waves

So sun radiation comes in and earth radiation gets back into space.

But some of this infrared radiation is trapped by the greenhouse gases and warms the Earth.

Greenhouse gases

A lot of people reckon that the Earth is by far so big that human activities can’t bring about a long-lasting damage on our environment.

That idea might have been true in the past,but it isn’t true anymore, as the most vulnerable part of the planet is the atmosphere.

As it is well known, it’s so vulnerable because of being very thin.

If the Earth were an apple , its skin would be like its atmosphere (troposphere)

Secondly, since eighteenth century, human activities have changed the composition of the atmosphere.

Human activities versus environment.

Therefore, human activities are very probably influencing the Earth’s climate.

The term ‘climate change’ is often used interchangeably with the term ‘global warming’

but according to the National Academy of Science

the first term is becoming more and more common because it helps to explain that there are actually others changes in addition to rising temperatures

Human activities as fossil fuel burning and clearing of forest have added these gases to the atmosphere, mainly CO2.

Greenhouse gases increasing

In conclusión, the global temperature will probably rise from 1.1 to 6.4ºC during the

twenty-first century

and it will depend on the future emissions, of course.

However, warming is expected to continue for a long time (beyond 2100) even if emissions stop.

Most people know we have a huge problem.…..

In fact most of national governments have signed and ratified the Kioto Protocol

for reducing greenhouse gases emissions.

We fixed the ozone’s hole and we can try to solve and stop this problem, too.v

But we have to change our behaviour soon, right now.