Related topics: climate change , carbon dioxide , global warming , greenhouse gas emissions , fossil fuels
Greenhouse gas
hideGreenhouse gases are gases in an atmosphere that absorb and emit radiation within the thermal infrared range. This process is the fundamental cause of the greenhouse effect. Common greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere include water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. In our solar system, the atmospheres of Venus, Mars and Titan also contain gases that cause greenhouse effects. Greenhouse gases greatly affect the temperature of the Earth; without them, Earth's surface would be on average about 33°C (59°F) colder than at present.
Human activities since the start of the industrial era around 1750 have increased the levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The 2007 assessment report compiled by the IPCC observed that "changes in atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases and aerosols, land cover and solar radiation alter the energy balance of the climate system", and concluded that "increases in anthropogenic greenhouse gas concentrations is very likely to have caused most of the increases in global average temperatures since the mid-20th century".
For more information about Greenhouse gas, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with greenhouse gas
China adopts law to boost renewable energy industry
Dec 27, 2009 |
3.5 / 5 (8) |
1
China's national assembly Saturday signalled the country's commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by adopting a law supporting its renewable energy industry.
Panasonic develops direct methanol fuel cell system with high power output and durability
Dec 26, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (24) |
9
Panasonic Corporation announced it has developed a direct methanol fuel cell system which can produce an average power output of 20 W by increasing the output per cubic centimeter twice that of its previous prototype. Using ...
China defends role at Copenhagen
Dec 25, 2009 |
1.8 / 5 (5) |
5
China has defended its role at this month's climate change talks in Copenhagen, saying Premier Wen Jiabao played a key part in sealing an accord, after critics blamed Beijing for blocking negotiations.
Cornellians build computer climate-change model
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Dec 21, 2009 |
2.7 / 5 (7) |
6
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers are contributing to a new model of climate change that may give more accurate predictions of the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in Earth's future.
Oceans becoming noisier thanks to pollution -- report
Dec 20, 2009 |
4 / 5 (4) |
4
The world's oceans are becoming noisier thanks to pollution, with potentially harmful effects for whales, dolphins and other marine life, US scientists said in a study published Sunday.
Global warming likely to be amplified by slow changes to Earth systems
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Dec 20, 2009 |
2.9 / 5 (45) |
58
Researchers studying a period of high carbon dioxide levels and warm climate several million years ago have concluded that slow changes such as melting ice sheets amplified the initial warming caused by greenhouse ...
Diplomatic frenzy at final day of UN climate talks
Dec 18, 2009 |
4 / 5 (4) |
2
(AP) -- A diplomatic frenzy enveloped the final day of the U.N. climate conference Friday, with President Barack Obama twice meeting privately with China's premier as world leaders pressed to salvage a global ...
Acid oceans: the 'evil twin' of climate change
Dec 18, 2009 |
4.1 / 5 (21) |
24
(AP) -- Far from Copenhagen's turbulent climate talks, the sea lions, harbor seals and sea otters reposing along the shoreline and kelp forests of this protected marine area stand to gain from any global ...
How to spur energy storage innovations
Dec 17, 2009 |
2 / 5 (2) |
0
Imagine flying all the way from coast to coast, completely guilt-free, in an airplane that doesn’t emit a single particle of greenhouse gas or air pollutants. That could happen someday, perhaps brought to ...
Computer simulation strengthens link between climate change and release of subsea methane
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Dec 17, 2009 |
4.1 / 5 (23) |
66
(PhysOrg.com) -- A first-of-its-kind computer simulation that mirrors real-world observations of methane bubbling up from a seabed in the Arctic Ocean provides further evidence that warming oceans may unleash ...
Forests take center stage at Copenhagen
Dec 17, 2009 |
3 / 5 (2) |
0
As the UN Climate Conference in Copenhagen approaches its conclusion, negotiations are focusing on the role of forests in mitigating climate change. The new 'Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest ...
NASA, Google offer more precise emissions tracking
Dec 17, 2009 |
1 / 5 (1) |
0
(AP) -- The question is a potential deal-killer: If nations ever agree to slash greenhouse gas emissions, how will the world know if they live up to their pledges?
Clinton: US would help raise billions on climate
Dec 17, 2009 |
3.4 / 5 (8) |
4
(AP) -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton sought to put new life into flagging U.N. climate talks Thursday by announcing the U.S. would join others in raising $100 billion a year by 2020 to help ...
NASA Calculates a Carbon Budget for California
Dec 16, 2009 |
2.8 / 5 (9) |
6
(PhysOrg.com) -- While world organizations struggle to find a benchmark and tracking standards for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, NASA has been supporting California’s new carbon emissions inventory report, using its satellite ...
Study: Earth's polar ice sheets vulnerable to even moderate global warming
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
Dec 16, 2009 |
2.8 / 5 (46) |
40
A new analysis of the geological record of the Earth's sea level, carried out by scientists at Princeton and Harvard universities and published in the Dec. 16 issue of Nature, employs a novel statistical approa ...
