Global warming question?

Question

I know the sun has about another 5 billion years, but could Earth's temperature be rising as it ages? Is the sun always expanding into a red giant, slowly at first but then rapidly later in its life? If so, could this be a cause of global warming if it is even happening at all?

Answer 1

No, the sun is currently in a very stable state. It does expand / contract very slightly, but hardly enough to effect global climate on Earth. The root causes of periodic global warming / cooling aren't well understood, but such cycles have happened countless times in the past. The current warming is *not* strictly due to our civilization, but is just another one of the endless cycles. We are certainly contributing to the speed of the current global warming cycle and probably deepening its effects, but there is not a single thing we can do to stop it altogether.

Answer 2

The Sun will slowly warm up so that even though it does not become a red giant until another 4 Billion years, it will be warm enough in "only" 1 Billion years to cause Earth to get too hot for life. But even one Billion years is a long time and the warming is so slow that for all practical purposes it can be assumed as staying constant over any given Million year period. It can definitely not be used to explain a warming that has occurred in only 200 years.

However, there may be more subtle variations in the Sun, where it maybe gets a little hotter and the cooler again every few hundred years (or few thousand or even few hundred thousand years) in some kind of natural cycle. We do not yet have proof that it does that, but it is definitely a possibility. It may explain past ice ages and past times of climate even warmer that what we have today..

Answer 3

Like everyone said, the sun is fairly stable, so if we are causing global warming we need to look at ways we can do something about it, like grow a trillion trees and process the wood we sustainably harvest into alternative fuels such as hydrogen, methane and methanol. We can run the planet off such fuels for millions of years, long after we run out of oil and gas and even coal. And we can put some of the carbon back in the ground as charcoal, a byproduct from the distilation of the wood. This will keep it out of the air and improve the soils at the same time. And if we store billions of tons of charcoal that can be burned if global cooling goes too far, then we can prevent that too. Ring me if you want to know how you can do your bit (01656 739 813) Bob.

Answer 4

The sun is slowly expanding but at a rate that will not make a noticable change for us for a billion years so the climate change we are experiencing is happening at a rate that cannot be the result of the suns expansion.

We´d better hope that we are the cause of the climate change because if it is some unknown mechanism then we are truly screwed. There wouldn´t be at thing we could do about it. But if we are the cause, if we are doing it then atleast we have a chance to undo it.

Answer 5

No. The Sun will not begin expanding for another 5 billion years. And if there sun were causing global warming, we would see the temperatures of all the other planets increasing as well. And we don't.

Answer 6

I was just thinking about global warming today, and I thought of another thing that might be causing it. The Earth is tilted at about 23 degrees, which is what causes the seasons, well, this tilt wobbles a little bit. I don't know the exact numbers, but I think it wobbles between 21 and 25 degrees. If you're still with me, the Earth wobbles, and if it tilts to a higher degree angle, that would make the seasons more extreme, both winter and summer. Just a theory.

Answer 7

NO.

Age has nothing to do with it. What matters is the effective heat transfer from solar radiation to solid mass such as the Earth's surface.

Everyone seems to wish to point at automobiles and factories as the root cause of this sudden warming, but I rather think that it is the recent rise in global jet flights at high altitude all over the place. Jet planes spew out massive amounts of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide at high altitudes. Cars, buses, and trucks emit their carbon polutants down where they can be filtered by trees, grasses, and shrubs. So, down with the Jets if we wish to survive.

As far as the Sun expanding...You can forget that. The process of expansion for the Sun is scheduled to begin when the Sun begins running out of Hydrogen gas to fuse into Helium. At its present rate of hydrogen consumption scientists predict it might run out of that fuel in about 13 Billion Years. Then is when you and your friends should tighten their britches and be ready to run...

Answer 8

Everyone so far is right: The sun is in a state of hydrostatic equilibrium. That means its internal pressure from nuclear fusion is exactly counteracting the crush of gravity. In another TWO to THREE million years, it will begin to cool and expand. It won't feel much like cooling to us, though, because the cooling causes it to expand, until eventually it will envelope the Earth's orbit, disintegrating the inner three planets.

Answer 9

Very interesting theory. I honestly don't know but it sounds relatively convincing. You know even though it sounds right I highly doubt that that is the cause. I am firmly convinced that air pollution from car exhausts and manufacturing production is making our planet suffer terribly. Then again I have no proof..... I guess all "I' cany say is that it "sounds right". Space is a very interesting topic to talk about. So much is left undiscovered .... so much. We have not even scratched the surface of the complexities of space and the outer world. Who knows maybe there are "aliens" or whatever else is out there. There could be a race out there So much superior than us that is could be scary. We just don't know. Anyway, I am getting way out of hand. I'm sorry I can't answer your question but at least I gave my testimony. Remember that we can do ANYTHING that we set our minds to. =)

Answer 10

no... the sun is currently a relatively stable size... it is not turning into a red giant at this time... While the sun does play a role in global warming (it supplies the heat that the CO2 (we produce) captures) it is not doing anything abnormal now versus 100+ years ago