TH E G LO B A L W A R M IN G

Sum m ary
Causes
The Greenhouse effect
Deforestation
Consequences

Causes
Global warming is primarily a problem of too much

carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmospherewhich acts as

a blanket, trapping heat and warming the planet. As we
burn fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas for energy
or cut down and burn forests to create pastures and
plantations, carbon accumulates and overloads our
atmosphere. Certain waste management and
agricultural practices aggravate the problem by
releasing other potent global warming gases, such as
methane and nitrous oxide. See the pie chart for a
breakdown of heat-trapping global warming emissions
by economic sector.

Causes
Scientists have spent decades figuring out what is causing

global warming. They've looked at the natural cycles and events

that are known to influence climate. But the amount and pattern
of warming that's been measured can't be explained by these
factors alone. The only way to explain the pattern is to include
the effect of greenhouse gases (GHGs) emitted by humans.
One of the first things scientists learned is that there are several
greenhouse gases responsible for warming, and humans emit
them in a variety of ways. Most come from the combustion of
fossil fuels in cars, factories and electricity production. The gas
responsible for the most warming is carbon dioxide, also called
CO2. Other contributors include methane released from landfills
and agriculture (especially from the digestive systems of grazing
animals), nitrous oxide from fertilizers, gases used for
refrigeration and industrial processes, and the loss of forests
that would otherwise store CO2.

Causes
Different greenhouse gases have very different

heat-trapping abilities. Some of them can even

trap more heat than CO2. A molecule of methane
produces more than 20 times the warming of a
molecule of CO2. Nitrous oxide is 300 times more
powerful than CO2. Other gases, such as
chlorofluorocarbons (which have been banned in
much of the world because they also degrade the
ozone layer), have heat-trapping potential
thousands of times greater than CO2. But because
their concentrations are much lower than CO2,
none of these gases adds as much warmth to the
atmosphere as CO2 does.

Causes
In order to understand the effects of all the

gases together, scientists tend to talk about

all greenhouse gases in terms of the
equivalent amount of CO2. Since 1990, yearly
emissions have gone up by about 6 billion
metric tons of "carbon dioxide equivalent"
worldwide, more than a 20 percent increase.

The G reenhouse Eff

ect
Thegreenhouse effectis a process by

whichthermal radiationfrom a planetary

surface is absorbed by atmospheric
greenhouse gases and is re-radiated in all
directions.
Since part of this re-radiation is back
towards the surface and the lower
atmosphere, it results in an elevation of
the average surface temperature above
what it would be in the absence of the
gases.

The G reenhouse Eff

ect

The G reenhouse Eff

ect
Solar radiation at the frequencies ofvisible

lightlargely passes through the atmosphere to

warm the planetary surface, which then emits this
energy at the lower frequencies ofinfraredthermal
radiation. Infrared radiation is absorbed by
greenhouse gases, which in turn re-radiate much of
the energy to the surface and lower atmosphere.
The mechanism is named after the effect of solar
radiation passing through glass and warming
agreenhouse, but the way it retains heat is
fundamentally different as a greenhouse works by
reducing airflow, isolating the warm air inside the
structure so that heat is not lost by convection.

The G reenhouse Eff

ect
The climate system can respond to changes

inexternal forcings.External forcings can "push" the

climate in the direction of warming or
cooling.Examples of external forcings include changes
in atmospheric composition (e.g., increased
concentrations ofgreenhouse gases),solar
luminosity,volcaniceruptions, andvariations in
Earth's orbitaround the Sun.Orbital cyclesvary slowly
over tens of thousands of years, and at present are in
an overall cooling trendwhich would be expected to
lead towards aglacial periodwithin the currentice
age, but the 20th centuryinstrumental temperature
record shows a sudden rise in global temperatures

D eforestation
Deforestation,clearanceorclearingis the

removal of a forest or stand of trees where the

land is thereafter converted to a non-forest use.
Examples of deforestation include conversion of
forestland to farms, ranches, or urban use.
By most accounts, deforestation in tropical
rainforests adds more carbon dioxide to the
atmosphere than the sum total of cars and trucks
on the worlds roads. According to the World
Carfree Network (WCN), cars and trucks account
for about 14 percent of global carbon emissions,
while most analysts attribute upwards of 15
percent to deforestation.

D eforestation
The reason that logging is so bad for the

climate is that when trees are felled they

release the carbon they are storing into the
atmosphere, where it mingles with
greenhouse gases from other sources and
contributes to global warming accordingly. The
upshot is that we should be doing as much to
prevent deforestation as we are to increase
fuel efficiency and reduce automobile usage.

D eforestation
Deforestation is ongoing and is

shapingclimateandgeography.
Deforestation is a contributor to global warming, and is

often cited as one of the major causes of the enhanced

greenhouse effect. Tropical deforestation is responsible
for approximately 20% of world greenhouse gas
emissions. According to theIntergovernmental Panel on
Climate Changedeforestation, mainly in tropical areas,
could account for up to one-third of
totalanthropogeniccarbon dioxideemissions.But
recent calculations suggest that carbon dioxide
emissions from deforestation and forest degradation
contribute about 12% of total anthropogenic carbon
dioxide emissions with a range from 6 to 17%.

D eforestation

D eforestation
The water cycle is also affected by

deforestation. Trees extract groundwater

through their roots and release it into the
atmosphere. When part of a forest is removed,
the trees no longer transpire this water,
resulting in a much drier climate.
Deforestation reduces the content of water in
the soil and groundwater as well as
atmospheric moisture. The dry soil leads to
lower water intake for the trees to
extract.Deforestation reduces soil cohesion,
so thaterosion, flooding andlandslidesensue.

Consequences
Over the last century, global average temperature has

increased by more than 1F (0.7C). The 2001-2010

decade is the warmest since 1880the earliest year
for which comprehensive global temperature records
were available. In fact, nine of the warmest years on
record have occurred in just the last 10 years. This
warming has been accompanied by a decrease in very
cold days and nights and an increase in extremely hot
days and warm nights. The continental United States,
for example, has seen record daily highs twice as often
as record daily lows from 2000 to 2009. While the
record shows that some parts of the world are warming
faster than others, the long-term global upward trend is
unambiguous.

Consequences
The planet is warming, from North Pole

to South Pole, and everywhere in

between. And the effects of rising
temperatures arent waiting for some farflung future. Theyre happening right
now. Signs are appearing all over, and
some of them are surprising. The heat is
not only melting glaciers and sea ice, its
also shifting precipitation patterns and
setting animals on the move.

Consequences
Some impacts from increasing temperatures are already happening:

Ice is melting worldwide, especially at the Earths poles. This

includes mountain glaciers, ice sheets covering West Antarctica
and Greenland, and Arctic sea ice.

Researcher Bill Fraser has tracked the decline of the Adlie

penguins on Antarctica, where their numbers have fallen from
32,000 breeding pairs to 11,000 in 30 years.

Sea level rise became faster over the last century.

Some butterflies, foxes, and alpine plants have moved farther

north or to higher, cooler areas.

Precipitation (rain and snowfall) has increased across the globe, on

average.

Spruce bark beetles have boomed in Alaska thanks to 20 years of

warm summers. The insects have chewed up 4 million acres of
spruce trees.

Consequences
Other effects could happen later this century, if warming

continues.

Sea levels are expected to rise between 7 and 23 inches

(18 and 59 centimeters) by the end of the century, and
continued melting at the poles could add between 4 and
8 inches (10 to 20 centimeters).

Hurricanes and other storms are likely to become stronger.

Species that depend on one another may become out of

sync. For example, plants could bloom earlier than their

pollinating insects become active.
Floods and droughts will become more common. Rainfall in

Ethiopia, where droughts are already common, could

decline by 10 percent over the next 50 years.

Consequences

Less fresh water will be available. If the Quelccaya ice cap in Peru
continues to melt at its current rate, it will be gone by 2100, leaving
thousands of people who rely on it for drinking water and electricity
without a source of either.

Some diseases will spread, such as malaria carried by mosquitoes.

Ecosystems will changesome species will move farther north or

become more successful; others wont be able to move and could
become extinct. Wildlife research scientist Martyn Obbard has found
that since the mid-1980s, with less ice on which to live and fish for
food, polar bears have gotten considerably skinnier. Polar bear
biologist Ian Stirling has found a similar pattern in Hudson Bay. He
fears that if sea ice disappears, the polar bears will as well.

The End
Realised by: Virva Alexandra
Cimpean Paul
Berciu Anca
Class : X-B
Prof. : Moldovan Adriana