Global warming and climate change – An interlink

Rajbir Saha

(rajbirsaha1995@gmail.com)

The continuous rise in the temperature of the planet is upsetting. The root cause for this is Global Warming, which begins when sunlight reaches the Earth. The clouds, atmospheric particles, reflective ground surfaces and surface of oceans then sends back about 30% of sunlight back into the space, whilst the remaining is absorbed by oceans, air and land. This consequently heats the surface of the planet and atmosphere, making life feasible. As the earth warms up, this solar energy is radiated by thermal radiation and infrared rays, propagating directly out to space thereby cooling the earth. However, some of the outgoing radiation is re-absorbed by carbon dioxide, water vapour's, ozone, methane and other gases in the atmosphere and is radiated back to the surface of the earth. These gases are commonly known as greenhouse gases due to their heat-trapping capacity. It must be noted that this re-absorption process is good as the earth's average surface temperature would be very cold if there was no existence of greenhouse gases. Global warming is primarily a problem of too much carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere trapping heat and warming the Planet. Global Warming is nothing but the increase of Earth's average surface temperature due to the effect of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide and methane emissions out of human activities such as burning fossil fuels or deforestation. Global warming occurs when carbon dioxide and other air pollutants collect in the atmosphere and absorb sunlight and solar radiation that have bounced off the earth's surface. Normally, this radiation would escape into space but these pollutants, which can last for years to centuries in the atmosphere, trap the heat and cause the planet to get hotter. As we burn fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas for energy or cut down and burn forests to create pastures and plantations, carbon accumulates and overloads our atmosphere. Certain waste management and agricultural practices aggravate the problem by releasing other potent global warming gases, such as methane and nitrous oxide. Increasing rainfall also leads to larger amounts of agricultural pollution, as heavy rains wash manure and fertilizer off of farm fields and into our streams and lakes. These gases can trap heat in the atmosphere, causing a steady increase in temperatures. Global warming is changing our world and it is a global threat with real implications for everyone no matter where you live. As global warming alters weather patterns across the globe such as scorching hot summers and extremely unpredictable weather are expected to become the norm. This will result in more droughts as well as more floods and increasing uncertainty in the existing climate to the future. As temperatures rise, air quality problems worsen and would lead to increased asthma and other health impacts would be significant. Severe allergies can also lead to missed days of work and school, and overall lower quality of life. Wildlife and trees will feel the impacts as well. Greenhouse gases are a group of compounds that can trap heat (longwave radiation) in the atmosphere, keeping the Earth's surface warmer than it would be if they were not present.

Climate Change: The variation in climate during historical time dating back to few thousand years, collectively called climate change. Variations are occurring within a period of less than 30 to 35 years, a period used to calculate values of climatic norms. These variations are too rapid to be regarded as climatic change. Several agriculture records kept in Europe since the middle ages have been used to infer the climate. Because wheat and wine are sensitive to temperature their crop histories provide valuable information on past climates. Greenhouse gases act like a blanket for the troposphere and make the stratosphere colder. In other words, global warming can make ozone depletion much worse right when it is supposed to begin its recovery during the next century. By standing the ozone hole phenomenon scientist have environmental change on a global scale and have an impact on the earth's future in the case of the ozone layer, steps have been taken to avoid further environmental problems by regulating human activities. Because the effect of releasing CFC is a global issue, international protocols have been established in a cooperative effort for the planet's future. Currently, we do not understand the details well enough to provide a full explanation or to predict what may occur in the future. As with the increasing amount of CO2 in the troposphere and how it relates to global warming. Intact, global warming, ozone layer depletion, pollution and solid waste all pose a serious threat to the quality of life on earth. They are separate problems but as has been seen these are links between each. The use of CFCs not only destroys the ozone layer but also leads to global warming. To solve the global environmental problem one need coordinated actions between countries. It is shown that such a policy will generally affect the outcome of international negotiations about reduced emissions. Climate is reshaping human civilization. But, how we will respond to the climate will determine the future of our species. Ensuring climate stability, establishing protection from the storm, assuring sufficient food and the availability of sufficient drinkable water are the main elements that demand the preservation of climate. Substantial scientific evidence indicates that an increase in the global average temperature of more than 2°F above where we are today poses severe risks to natural systems and human health and wellbeing. Extracting, burning and transporting fossil fuels all carry significant risks to our public health, to the climate and those directly involved in these archaic industries.

Therefore, we should not be using deadly and outdated technology to power our homes, schools, hospitals, and businesses but, we have to keep the majority of known fossil fuel reserves in the ground. The climate and the future of our kids will be saved when all of us are moving in the same direction.