What causes global warming??

Question

What causes global warming? I need this information in 7th grade understanding. Any other information about global warming will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

When did the theory of global warming start?

Answer 1

How can we close this endless Global Warming thread?
There are thousands of articles concerning the facts of Global Warming in this forum. Everybody can search and read them.

Stop this endless global warming 'questions', please: Go to report and block this spam!

Answer 2

The change in the temperature is caused when there is an imbalance between energy falling on the earth (largely from the sun) and energy being radiated by earth. If more heat falls than is radiated then global warming takes place.
There is a very long cycle of warming and cooling naturally and we are in a warming phase. On top of this there are shorter cycles. These are well documented but not very well understood. In about 1950 a new trend began and it is very unlikely that this is a blip in previous trends. Statistically there is greater than a 90% probability that it is not a continuation of previous trends and cycles.
There has been an unprecedented amount of research into this by scientists from around the world. The majority - but not all - believe that it is caused because more heat being radiated form the surface of the earth is being reflected back rather than escaping into space. The most likely causes are the so called greenhouse gases - predominately carbon dioxide and methane.
A number of mathematical models have been built to represent this phenomena. The most extensive report is that of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change - see source

Answer 3

There are many things that cause global warming. First of all, the effects of natural things such as volcanoes spewing dust and chemicals into the air. Fires spewing ash and smoke into the air. These can block out the sun and cause a cooling effect. Different gases can react and cause either warming or cooling depending on the gas involved.

Then there are the human causes. Car exhaust, manufacturing plant exhaust and even the gases put into the air from garbage dumps and the raising of animals for food.

Just think about it. Most jobs that we do each day contribute to the problem. We generate millions of tons of trash each day. This has to be taken to a land fill someplace. You need trucks to do this. You use a printer, the printer has to have the paper replaced, paper is shipped by truck, and picked up by car, or delivered locally by another truck. An auto mechanic uses tools that spew air and oil into the atmosphere. We all generate trash. And then that trash as it degrades out gases tons more harmful gas.

Have a dog or cat? Yep even their by products contribute to the problem. Human by products too.

Another thing to consider is this. When a fire happens and blocks out the sun. It can and does alter the weather patterns a bit. The longer the fire goes, and the bigger it gets the more it can alter.

The cutting down of trees also.
These things all effect the CO2 levels in the air.

I hope that this has helped in some way.

Answer 4

I recommend that you read this review:
http://www.coyoteblog.com/Skeptics_Guide_to_Anthropogenic_Global_Warming_v1.0.pdf

It may be above a 7 grade understanding but It deals with all of the common GW myths and explains why the hypothesis that CO2 causes warming is likely false.

Here is analogy that may make sense:

Put a ball in a bowl is flick it with your finger. The ball will roll around but will eventually stop at the bottom of the bowl. This is an example of a stable self-correcting system.

Put a ball on top of another ball and flick and you will see the ball gathers speed until rolls off the ball. This is an example of an unstable run away system.

The climate is a stable system which means that changes that increase the temperature like CO2 will be balanced by other changes that provide cooling like clouds and rain.

GW advocates like to pretend that the climate is an unstable system and CO2 induced warming will not be matched by things that cause cooling. This is a belief that has not been proven and only works in the computer models that they have created.

Unfortunately, there computer models make no sense. If they were right the earth would have long turned into an ice ball liek mars or a furnance venus. There is no reason to believe that human's have the power to destroy a system that has been stable for billions of years.

Answer 5

worldwide warming turns into worldwide cooling because of the fact once you have invested a huge quantity of ability faking, forging, manipulating archives and merchandising the fake perception that CO2 reasons a international temperature upward thrust however the advice starts to show a cooling variety then you definitely pull the previous switcheroo and with a bit of luck wish everybody is so suggestions broken by making use of the actual pollutants, mercury, lead, fluoride and Fox information that their gentle minds may even settle for that its available. the fact is for sure became into that there became into no actual guy-made worldwide warming first of all, and any average warming became into thoroughly organic. worldwide temperature is pushed particularly by making use of photograph voltaic pastime, and photograph voltaic flare pastime is now at a low so the planet is definitely at the instant cooling after an ever so average upward thrust. So the respond is..... it won't be able to. One would not reason the different the temperature purely fluctuates finding on photograph voltaic pastime.

Answer 6

Global warming is cyclical. It happens every 1500 years. Man is NOT the cause.

We could say that the sun and time are the causes.

.

Answer 7

The sun. Increased sunspots over the past decade have increased worldwide temperatures. We are about to face decreased sunspots which will decrease global warming over the next few years.

I know this is controversial, but increased Carbon Dioxide trapping the heat caused by the sun thus causing global warming is largely unproven. This theory centers around pseudo political science. Every change in weather is linked to global warming. During the 1970's we were faced with global cooling. I think this will turn out to be a huge hoax.

Answer 8

This web site includes most of the factors in play.
http://www.nov55.com/gbwm.html

Some of what Alarmists want you to ignore -
The oceans drive the global climates, NOT CO2.
The earth's core heat is almost completely overlooked.
Clouds are perhaps 100+ times more important than
any other factor - both blocking incoming and trapping
outgoing heat.
Solar cycles (sun spots, etc) have far more impact than
they want you to believe.

You could bet now people in the midwest covered with snow are praying for some of these clouds to go away and let a little Sun in.
http://www.weather.unisys.com/satellite/sat_ir_enh_east.html

Answer 9

Global Warming is caused by an excess of greenhouse gasses (such as CO2) in the atmosphere. This excess is from burning fossil fuels (oil, natural gas, and coal). The gasses in these fuels were trapped deep underground but are now going into the atmosphere.

Answer 10

The greenhouse effect is caused by some of the energy from the sun being trapped in our atmosphere, by water vapor. The presence of greenhouse gases increase the water trapping ability of water, and causes it to release less heat energy as it rises.

A normal amount of greenhouse gases, are balanced by plants, oceans, and microbial life. Thus keeping our planet roughly 30 degree warmer than it would be without the green house effect. This is what is responsible for our planet being able to sustain life.

As forests are destroyed to make way for development, and more nitrogen based fertilizers are used in farming to supply the ever increasing demand for food, more greenhouse gases are put into our atmosphere, than are remediated by plant and microbial life.

This imbalance causes more of the sun's energy to be trapped in our atmosphere.
If it helps, think of water vapor like sweat. When the human body produced energy, our pores secrete moisture that absorbes the energy and becoems vapor. The vapor trasnports the heat energy away from our bodies, and as it loses the energy it condenses back to liquid.
Water is suppose to do the same job for the planet, by absorbing radiant energy and turning to water vapor. The water vapor rises, losing the energy to the upper atmosphere, allowing the excess energy a method to be transported back up and out.
Presence of green house gases causes this process to be slowed and allows more heat to be trapped in the lower atmosphere.