how long will it take to stop global warming?

Answer 1

If we're talking only about manmade global warming then the answer is thousands of years. If we stopped all production of greenhouse gases with immediate effect we still have the problem that there's already a lot of them in the atmosphere.

Some of the greenhouse gases have atmospheric lifespans of thousands of years and will contribute to global warming for as long as they're in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is the most prevelant of the greenhouse gases and this has a 115 year atmospheric lifespan. Methane and nitrous oxide are the next two most prevelant GHGs and they have shorter lifespans. next on the list comes dichlorodiflouromethane which is a particularly nasty GHG, although present in tiny amounts it makes a significant contribution to global warming (8500 times more 'powerful' than CO2).

If humans intervene in the Earth's climate (something called geoengineering) then we can concievably take some control over our climate and to an extent could regulate the temperature of Earth. Such schemes - there are several of them - are being studied and proposed at present and it's possible one or more could be implemented within maybe 10 to 15 years.

Global warming can only be stopped naturally if we, as humans, dramatically cut our greenhouse gas emissions. By dramatically I'm talking about a 94% reduction, to acheive this would be as good as impossible and would mean altering our lifestyles to such an extent that we'd be back in the dark ages.

Answer 2

When are we going to stop the nonsense and give the global warming hoax a proper burial? Only God can change the weather. If you want to change your lifestyle and believe in this nonsense go ahead but do not try to force your nonsense on to all sane people. Wake up and get real. Do you realize that society wants to spend billions of dollars of money for a problem we cannot control? Do you realize that this causes the dth of at least 2,000 people a day worldwide? No I guess you did not! since you are so absorbed in your own dillusions. It is scary that people worldwide are so uneducated that this hoax has spread like this. I can understand where the people of Europe might be naive enough to believe in this nonsense but the rest of the word? Let's hope we don't go back to the economy of the middle ages because if we keep spending on this nonsense that is what will happen. Maybe you ought to let the good people of Mars know that they should cut down on fossil fuel burning cars since global warming is occurring there at a lot faster rate than Earth! Thank God the US had the common sense to reject the Kyoto treaty. Maybe this is the reason that many European countries have an economy not must better than third world countries.
Maybe when one of the 2,000 dcsd a day is a relative then we will stop the nonsense. Please learn to think for yourself instead of following the latest fad. Al Gore invented global warming in order to become president of the US. If you really care about society and the human race do something to help the economy such as get a good education. Contribute to charity but do not throw money down the toilet on a hoax. Twenty years from now, if the economy of the world is not in complete collapse, this generation of humans will be remembered as the most foolish generation of people to ever populate the Earth. Somebody needs to take a stand and say enough is enough.

Answer 3

I bet John Doe will be one of the first to try and cut in line when we all need help to survive this global warming. People like that are part of the problem not the solution.
As has been stated-stopping Global warming is NOT something that can be done over night. Between natural events and add in what we humans have contributed to the problem, I really doubt we will survive it in the long run. The dinosaurs were very successful as a species-they lived for millions of years, while we are becoming a failed species due to our own Bigger brains.

Answer 4

Consider this: Drop something on a deep pool with a rope attached, how deep will it go? As far as the rope.
But, Global Warming has very, very, long rope.
Consider Venus, its atmosphere is Carbon Dioxide and its temperature is 846 deg Fahrenheit, that is the maximum the Earth will approach. Life will end well before we reach the boiling temperature of water, 212 deg F.

The key aspect many ignore, or don't understand, is that CO2 stays in the air, it does not "wear out", nothing will clean the air.
(The Ozone Hole problem was different and once we stopped putting Freon in the air, the Ozone was naturally replenished, and the problem stays solved, as long as we don't put Freon again).
GW is different, this difference led to a mistake by a rich billionaire. Global Warming will continue for as long as there is CO2 in the air until the heat from the Earth equals the heat from the Sun -close to the temperature of Venus.

Yes, trees remove CO2 and bury the Carbon in the soil and the Oceans also remove CO2 and both of them keep it. Until the CO2 in the soil is removed by forest fires and CO2 in the oceans is removed by increased ocean temperatures.

We are presently talking only about goals to REDUCE the rate at which we dump CO2 put in the air. Nobody even talks about the fact that we must first reach the point of ZERO Emissions.

The Global Warming will continue, indefinitely, EVEN after we stop putting CO2 in the air. Because we dump more than the trees and oceans could absorb, in the past. It is now a lot worse, why?

Recently, it was found that the ocean around Antarctica has all the CO2 it can hold, and THAT is the coolest ocean water. All the other oceans are warmer and can keep LESS CO2.

Also, wildfires, forest fires and deliberate burning of the rain forest, is diminishing the amount of Carbon the forest and plants can bury in the soil, and nothing is being done about it -not even talking about it.

In short: FROM NOW ON: Most of the CO2 emissions will stay in the air and contribute to Global Warming, that is, contribute to the increase in temperature of the Earth.

Now, for the really BAD news:
The oceans also have Millions of tons of Methane in the water and Methane is ten (10) times worse than CO2 in its ability to block heat radiated from the Earth. If or when the Methane comes out of solution, we will be baked.

For the Good News: All of us over 55 years of age will not see temperatures over 120 deg F in Central California in the summer, but they will in Southern California. Will they migrate to the North, like the insects and wild animals?

Early Indicators: penguins and whales will go after the Polar bear. They depend on a Krill shrimp-like fish that is harder to find under the ice in Antarctica. The population of one type of penguin has been cut in half -already.
The California Sierra snowmelt ends earlier every one of the last seven years.
Human Impact: The galciers in Glacier Park will soon be gone, the Snow in Kilimanjaro will only be in photos within a couple of years -like VP Al Gore predicted.
Himalaya glaciers provide drinking water to over a Billion people in Central Asia, and they are melting rapidly. The melting of a glacier in Chile will leave a nearby town without drinking water.
Polar Bears depends on ice floes to fish on the Arctic, some polar bears have been seen from airplanes, swiming away from shore with no floes in sight from the airplane. They drown and wash ashore.

Answer 5

A fairly long time by our standards, a blink of an eye in the history books.

We have to focus on slowing it to a snail's pace, in hopes that future developments can stop and reverse it altogether.

So we actually have to do our part, so that the people in the future can do theirs, it's a project across time in a way.

Answer 6

There's not a lot of validity in global warming. You really cannnot stop something that really isnt there.

Answer 7

well it may never stop, since America was the only country to not sign the trite to stop global warming, it may take some time for the people to realize that this is a life or death matter. and that something needs to change

Answer 8

It will a quite long to stop global warming..........you could try to get more people to try to stop. but it will take about the whole world to stop global warming. Try to get all your friends and family to stop encouraging global warming. like recyling, not smoking, and more. it will be very exciting........you can also have a red wiggler farm.It contains earthworms and lots of dirt. you feed them veggies and fruits, no MEAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!
They will not touch thats all!!!!!!!! :) Good luck....(vote me the best plz!!!). MAke a greenhouse also. Plant lots of trees, gives you more fresh air.Go look up "most polluted cities in the world" .If you have friends and family in them then plz encourage them to do better, and give them lots of examples!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 9

Till the next ice age.

Answer 10

from what i hear and read in the news, it could take over 50 years to finally stop it, and that is if only people take dramatic changes to their lifestyles, like prince harry using the ROYAL TRAIN instead of the ROYAL HELICOPTER,........shouldn't we all?