Global warming
: Global warming is a gradual rise in atmospheric temperature that is mainly due to the greenhouse effect produced by the use of fossil fuels. Excessive use of fossil fuels brings increased concentrations of pollutants in the atmosphere, such as carbon dioxide and chlorofluorocarbons.
Author: Yunwha Lee
Editor: Minjae Shin
Impacts of carbon dioxide and chlorofluorocarbons on environment
Carbon dioxide (CO2)
= greenhouse gas
Cause an effect of protection, like glass, in a greenhouse by trapping heat and warming up the inside
Without CO2 that naturally exists in the atmosphere, Earth would become too cold for humans to survive
Chlorofluorocarbons (CFC)
Act to destroy the ozone layer
Trap heat in the lower atmosphere
Cause Earth to warm and climate and weather to change
Climate
: the long-term pattern of weather in a particular area
DIfference between weather and temperature → measure of time
Weather is what conditions of the atmosphere are over a short period of time
Climate is how the atmosphere behaves over relatively long periods of time
Climate change
: a gradual change in global or regional, and local climate patterns that result from the increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by human activities
Relationship between global warming and climate change
When the Earth’s atmosphere warms, more water is gathered, held, or released, changing the weather patterns; in other words, wet areas become wetter and dry areas become drier. Many other sorts of catastrophes, such as storms, floods, heat waves, and droughts, get worse and occur more frequently due to rising temperatures.
The impact of global warming → climate change
Ecosystems
Temperature rises
Water shortages
Increased fire threats
Drought
Weed and pest invasions
Intense storm damage
Salt invasion
Species
More than 25,000 species are at risk of extinction because of climate change. Plants and animals faced with climate change need to either move or adapt to survive.
With the speed of climate change, it is normally not possible for a species to adapt quickly enough to keep up with its changing environment.
Food and farming
Changes in rainfall patterns cause increasingly severe drought, frequent heat waves, flooding, and extreme weather.
These changes make it farmers more challenging to graze livestock and grow to produce, reducing food availability and making it more expensive to buy.
Water
Decrease in rainfall and increasingly severe droughts may lead to water shortages.
The effects of climate change
Observable effects on the environment
Glaciers have shrunk
Ice on rivers and lakes is breaking up earlier
Plant and animals ranges have shifted and trees are flowering sooner
Effects that scientists had predicted in the past resulted from global climate change
Loss of sea ice
Accelerated sea level rise and longer
More intense heat waves
All about climate. National Geographic Society. (n.d.). Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://www.nationalgeographic.org/article/all-about-climate/
Chlorofluorocarbons (cfcs) and hydrofluorocarbons (hfcs). Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. (2022, January 12). Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://www.pca.state.mn.us/air/chlorofluorocarbons-cfcs-and-hydrofluorocarbons-hfcs#:~:text=While%20acting%20to%20destroy%20ozone,lower%20atmosphere%20of%20the%20earth.
How does carbon dioxide increase Earth's temperature?: Natural history museum. Home. (n.d.). Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/quick-questions/how-does-carbon-dioxide-increase-global-temperature.html#:~:text=Carbon%20dioxide%20(CO2)%20is,cold%20to%20support%20human%20life.
Impacts of global warming. WWF. (n.d.). Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://www.wwf.org.au/what-we-do/climate/impacts-of-global-warming
NASA. (2022, July 18). The effects of climate change. NASA. Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://climate.nasa.gov/effects/
Palmetto. (2021, October 20). What is climate change? (Definition, Causes, and Effects). Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://palmetto.com/learning-center/blog/what-is-climate-change-definition-causes-effects
September 01, 2021 M. D. J. T. (2022, July 13). Global climate change: What you need to know. NRDC. Retrieved July 26, 2022, from https://www.nrdc.org/stories/global-climate-change-what-you-need-know
Comments