SEMINAR ON

GLOBAL WARMING AND

GREEN HOUSE EFFECT
INTRODUCTION
In 2013, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment
Report concluded, "It is extremely likely that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed
warming since the mid-20th century." The largest human influence has been the emission of greenhouse
gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. Climate model projections summarized in the
report indicated that during the 21st century the global surface temperature is likely to rise a further 0.3 to
1.7 °C (0.5 to 3.1 °F) in a moderate scenario, or as much as 2.6 to 4.8 °C (4.7 to 8.6 °F) in an extreme
scenario, depending on the rate of future greenhouse gas emissions and on climate feedback effects. These
findings have been recognized by the national science academies of the major industrialized nations and are
not disputed by any scientific body of national or international standing.

Globally, a majority of people consider global warming and green house effects are serious or very
serious issue. Possible societal responses to global warming include mitigation by emissions
reduction, adaptation to its effects, and possible future climate engineering. Every country in the world is a
party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), whose ultimate
objective is to prevent dangerous anthropogenic climate change.[23] Although the parties to the UNFCCC
have agreed that deep cuts in emissions are required[24] and that global warming should be limited to well
below 2 °C (3.6 °F) (with efforts made to limit warming to 1.5 °C (2.7 °F), the Earth's average surface
temperature has already increased by about half this threshold. [26] Some scientists call into question the
feasibility of the 2 °C (3.6 °F) temperature target, and some question the feasibility, in higher emissions
scenarios, of climate adaptation.
 GLOBAL WARMING
Measurements of temperature taken by instruments all over the world, on land and at sea have
revealed that during the 20th century the Earth surface and lowest part of the atmosphere warmed up on
average by about 0.60C.During this period, man-made emissions of greenhouse gases, including carbon
dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide have increased, largely as a result of the burning of fossil fuels for
energy and transportation, and land use changes including deforestation for agriculture. In the last 20 years,
concern has grown that these two phenomena are, at least in part, associated with each other. That is to say,
global warming is now considered most probably to be due to the increases in greenhouse gas emissions and
concurrent increases in atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations, which have enhanced the Earth's natural
greenhouse effect. Whilst other natural causes of climate change can cause global climate to change over
similar periods of time, computer models demonstrate that in all probability there is a real discernible human
influence on the global climate.

GLOBAL ENERGY BALANCE

 The global energy balance is the balance between incoming energy from the Sun and outgoing heat
from the Earth. T
 The global energy balance regulates the state of the Earth's climate, and modifications to it as a result
of natural and man-made climate forcing, cause the global climate to change.
 Energy released from the Sun as electromagnetic radiation has a temperature of approximately
60000C.
 At this temperature, electromagnetic radiation is emitted as shortwave light and ultraviolet energy.
 Electromagnetic radiation travels across space at the speed of light.
 When it reaches the Earth's, some is reflected back to space by clouds, some is absorbed by
the atmosphere, and some is absorbed at the Earth's surface.
 The Earth releases a lot of energy it has received from the Sun back to space.
 However, since the Earth is much cooler than the Sun, its radiating energy is longer wavelength
infrared energy or heat. Sometimes, we can indirectly see heat radiation

 The Earth atmosphere contains a number of greenhouse gases, which affect the Sun-Earth energy
balance.

 The average global temperature is in fact 330C higher than it should be.
  Greenhouse gases absorb electromagnetic radiation at some wavelengths but allow radiation at other
wavelengths to pass through unimpeded.

 The atmosphere is mostly transparent in the visible light (which is why we can see the Sun), but
significant blocking (through absorption) of ultraviolet radiation by the ozone layer, and infrared
radiation by greenhouse gases, occurs.

 The absorption of infrared radiation trying to escape from the Earth back to space is particularly
important to the global energy balance.

 Such energy absorption by the greenhouse gases heats the atmosphere, and so the Earth stores more
energy near its surface than it would if there was no atmosphere.

 The average surface temperature of the moon, about the same distance as the Earth from the Sun, is -
180C.

DEFINITION

Global warming is the term used to describe a gradual increase in the average temperature of the
Earth's atmosphere and its oceans, a change that is believed to be permanently changing the Earth’s climate.

 The average temperature of the Earth has risen between 0.4 and 0.8 °C over the past 100 years.
 Scientists from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate carrying out global warming research have
recently predicted that average global temperatures could increase between 1.4 and 5.8 °C by the
year 2100.  

HISTORY OF GLOBAL WARMING

 20  Century Climate Change

th

 During the 20th century a global average surface temperature increases of about 0.60C.
 With higher global temperatures one would expect an increase in rainfall and other forms of
precipitation, because of the greater amount of moisture available within the atmosphere.
 Since 1966 surface and troposphere temperature measurements is the decrease (by about 10%) in
snow cover and extent since the late 1960s.
 There has been a widespread retreat of mountain glaciers in non-polar regions during the 20th
century. Variations in sea-ice extent have also been reported, with spring and summer sea-ice extent
in the Northern Hemisphere decreasing by between 10 a 15% since the 1950s.
 Widespread retreat of mountain glaciers in non-polar regions during the 20th century.
  Spring and summer sea-ice extent in the Northern Hemisphere decreasing by between 10 an 15%
since the 1950s. 
 There has been a 2% increase in cloud cover over mid - to high latitude land areas during the 20th
century. 

21st Century Climate Change

 Global average warming of 0.30C per decade can be expected to occur during the 21st century.
 If the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas, is doubled from pre-
industrial levels, the Earth will warm by between 1.5 and 4.50C sometime over the next 200 years or
so.

INDICATORS OF A WARMING WORLD

We also know that our planet is warming because there are numerous indicators that provide
evidence of an increase in global mean temperature (GMT). Seven of these indicators are expected to
increase in a warming world. These seven indicators are humidity, air temperature near the surface,
temperature over oceans, sea surface temperature, ocean content, sea level and temperature over land. The
other three indicators are Arctic sea ice, snow, and glaciers––are expected to decrease.

CAUSES OF GLOBAL WARMING

The causes of global warming may be natural or may be caused by human interference.

NATURAL CAUSES

ATMOSPHERIC CARBON DIOXIDE

Carbon dioxide (CO2) only makes up 0.040% of the total atmosphere. However, it is the major
greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming for two reasons--it has a relatively long lifetime in the
atmosphere (approximately 100 years) and it is a strong absorber of infrared radiation. Carbon dioxide
constantly moves into and out of the atmosphere through several major pathways. Over short time scales, the
processes of photosynthesis, respiration, organic decomposition (decay), and combustion (burning of
organic material) increases or decrease the concentration of atmospheric CO2. Carbon dioxide is also
exchanged between the atmosphere and oceans by gas exchange over short time scales. Each year,
approximately one-fifth of the carbon (in the form of CO2) in the atmosphere is cycled in and out. Over
longer time scales, the concentration of atmospheric CO2 is changed by the formation of fossil fuels,
weathering of rocks, and volcanic eruptions. It is responsible for about half of the atmospheric heat retained
by trace gases and also for 50% of the greenhouse effect. Methane (CH4) is 20-30 times more effective than
CO2 in trapping heat. The potential of a greenhouse gas to cause greenhouse warming is expressed by
“Global Warming Potential” (GWP). The rate and duration of the warming of the 20th century is larger than
any other time during the last 1,000 years.

PERMAFROST

It is permanently frozen ground that traps moisture, heat, and trillions of tons of methane deep
beneath the surface. Permafrost may be a thin as a few meters or as thick as more than 1,000 meters (3,281
feet). Vast regions of permafrost in Canada, Alaska, Siberia, and the Tibetan Plateau are starting to thaw. As
permafrost melts, carbon dioxide or methane is released, further increasing the concentration of atmospheric
greenhouse gases.

VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS

Volcanic eruptions discharge carbon dioxide, but they may also emit aerosols, such as volcanic ash
or dust, and sulfur dioxide. Aerosols are liquids and solids that float around in the air. They may also include
soot, dust, salt crystals, bacteria, and viruses. Aerosols scatter incoming solar radiation, causing a slight
cooling effect. Volcanic aerosols can block a percentage of sunlight and cause a cooling that may last for 1-2
years. Every year it adds about 25 million tons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere.

Famous volcanic eruptions are 1883 eruption of Krakatau also in Indonesia and 1991 eruption of Mount
Pinatubo in the Philippines.
 In violent eruptions, volcanoes release ash particles and sulfur dioxide (SO2) into the stratosphere.
The larger particles settle after a few days while the sulfur dioxide combines with water vapor to from
sulfuric acid (H2SO4) and sulfate particles, known together as sulfurous aerosols. Winds transport these
sulfurous aerosols around the planet in easterly or westerly directions. For this reason, volcanoes that erupt
at lower latitudes (closer to the equator) are more likely to cause hemispheric or global cooling. Volcanoes
that erupt at higher latitudes (closer to the poles) are less likely to cause cooling because the sulfurous
aerosols are confined to wind patterns surrounding the poles.

ORBITAL CHANGES

The Milankovitch Theory explains the 3 cyclical changes in Earth’s orbit and tilt that cause the
climate fluctuations that occur over tens of thousands of years to hundreds of thousands of years. These
fluctuations include changes in the shape (eccentricity) of Earth’s orbit every ~100,000 years, the tilt
(obliquity) of Earth’s axis every ~41,000 years, and the wobbling (precession) of Earth’s axis about ~23,000
years. It affects the amount of solar radiation received at different latitudes over the year. The amount of
solar radiation reaching the Northern Hemisphere at 65°N seems to control the advance and retreat of
glaciers and ice sheets. 

VARIATION IN SOLAR RADIATION

The total amount of solar radiation varies by very small amounts. The energy emitted by the sun only
varies by 1.3 W/m2. This change in solar radiation is related to the number of sunspots. Sunspots are darker
areas on the sun’s surface. A sunspot develops where an intense magnetic field weakens the flow of gases
that transport heat energy from the sun’s interior. Sunspots appear dark because their temperature is lower
than the surrounding area.

Approximately every 11 years, the number of sunspots changes from a maximum number to a
minimum number. The sun emits slightly more radiation during active periods of sunspots. Because the
sunspots are suppressing heat, the heat flows to surrounding areas causing these regions to be brighter than
normal, radiating more heat. While more sunspots may contribute to warmer global climate, less sunspots
appear to be associated with a cooler global climate. About 300 years ago, there was a period of reduced
solar activity. This was called the Little Ice Age.

MOVEMENT OF CRUSTAL PLATES

As tectonic plates move over geological timescales, landmasses are carried along to different
positions and latitudes. These changes affect global circulation patterns of air and ocean water and the
climate of the continents.

HUMAN CAUSES

Humans have been emitting extra greenhouse gases, which are the result of burning fossil fuels (like
coal, oil and gas). In the next 100 years, CO2 produced by man will cause a lot more warming, from as low
as three degrees C to as high as 8 or 10 degrees C.

 Human-caused global warming may have already doubled the chance of “killer” heat waves like the
one that scorched Europe in July–August 2003. Strong evidence indicates that the summer was the
hottest in Europe in at least the past 500 years (Luterbacher et al., 2004).
 The UHI (Urban Heat Island) is enhanced by human activities within the urban environment.
Pollution has a warming effect on a city, in addition to the heat released by industrial processes,
household heating and car use. As cities grow, the UHI effect becomes stronger, creating an artificial
warming.
  CFCs (Chloro Floro Carbons) are believed to be responsible for 24% of the human contribution to
greenhouse gases. They also deplete ozone in the stratosphere.
 Most of the observed increase in global average temperatures since the mid-20th century is very
likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic GHG (green house gas) concentrations.
 The idea that humans are causing the world to heat up and risking disaster by doing so has a
powerful hold on the public perception. It is reinforced by media reporting which finds verification
for it in every weather event.
 Humanity may have only a narrow window of time left, perhaps a decade or so, to begin the long
process of stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations at a level that can avert devastating and
irreversible impacts from climate change.

CONSEQUENCES OF GLOBAL WARMING

 The effects of global warming have taken its role on people, animals, birds and habitat. In fact no
continent has been spared.
 At Antarctica, shrinking sea ice has reduced the population of the Adelie penguin by 33% in 25
years.
 In Canadian Arctic, the Peary caribou population has decreased due to heavy rainfall from 24,000 in
1961 to 1100 in 1997.
 Developing countries are twice as at risk to climate change as industrialized countries, and small
islands states are thrice as at risk, according to a group of UN scientists. U.S is the fourth country in
the world responsible for CO2 emission.
 Estimates drawn from reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Changes (IPCC) projects
increase in average global temperatures ranging from 1.4 0C to 5.8 0C by the year 2100.
 Global warming increases the desert.
 It increases temperature in North America, South Africa, Mexico, India and other countries. Changes
of hurricanes, cyclones and floods will be more which will damage the lagoons, estuaries and coral
reefs. Global warming may cause extinction of more than one million species of animals and plants
by 2050 AD.

EFFECT OF GLOBAL WARMING

LONG TERM EFFECT OF GLOBAL WARMING

Ice loss and sea level rise

Meltwater from melting ice sheets and glacier retreat contributes to a rise in the future sea level.

Antarctica
  In 2002 Vaughan & Spouge argued that the "WAIS most likely will not collapse in the next few
centuries." In an inaugural article for members of the National Academy of Sciences elected in
2005, Timothy Lenton and others suggest that a collapse of the West Antarctic ice sheet could occur within
a millennium. Specifically, they state "Although the timescale is highly uncertain, a qualitative WAIS
change could occur within this millennium, with collapse within 300 years being a worst-case scenario.
Rapid sea-level rise (greater than 1 m per century) is more likely to come from the WAIS than from
the Greenland ice sheet.". A study in 2015 found that assuming cumulative fossil fuel emissions of 10 000
gigatonnes of carbon, the Antarctic Ice Sheet could melt completely over the following millennia,
contributing 58 m to global sea-level rise, and 30 m within the first 1000 years.

Greenland
Greenland's ice sheet contains enough fresh water as ice to raise sea level worldwide by 7 metres
(23 ft). Greenland may become warm enough by 2100 to begin an almost complete melt over more than
1,000 years.[

Millennial-timescale events

Some long-term effects happen over thousands, not hundreds, of years.

Disruption to thermohaline circulation

The amount of oxygen dissolved in the oceans may decline, with adverse consequences for ocean
life. Severe, long-term ocean oxygen depletion, as well as a great expansion of ocean oxygen-minimum
zones for scenarios with high emissions or high climate sensitivity. 

Clathrate decomposition
Methane clathrate, also called methane hydrate, is a form of water ice that contains a large amount
of methane within its crystalstructure. Extremely large deposits of methane clathrate have been found under
sediments on the ocean floors of Earth (estimated at 3000[14]–11,000. Gton C).

Long-term return to equilibrium

While the warm surface waters of the oceans have limited ability to absorb anthropogenic carbon
dioxide, the coldest surface waters near the poles (2–3% of ocean surfaces) can transfer significant amounts
of carbon dioxide to deep-ocean reserves. Over a period of many centuries, this process and the process of
calcium carbonate absorption of carbon dioxide on land and in the oceans will remove 60–80% of the excess
carbon dioxide.

Igneous rock when exposed to a near surface environment absorbs carbon dioxide through a very
slow weathering rate, but weathering increases in a warmer, higher rainfall climate, speeding the process.
This geological weathering will absorb the remaining 20–40% of anthropogenic carbon dioxide over the
period of tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of years

EFFECTS OF GLOBAL WARMING ON HUMANS

Climate change has brought about possibly permanent alterations to Earth's geological, biological
and ecological systems. These changes have led to the emergence of large-scale environmental hazards to
human health, such as 

 Extreme weather, 
 ozone depletion,
 increased danger of wildland fires,
  loss of biodiversity stresses to food-producing systems
 global spread of infectious diseases.

In addition, climatic changes are estimated to cause over 150,000 deaths annually. The majority of the
adverse effects of climate change are experienced by poor and low-income communities around the world,
who have much higher levels of vulnerability to environmental determinants of health, wealth and other
factors, and much lower levels of capacity available for coping with environmental change. A report on the
global human impact of climate change published by the Global Humanitarian Forum in 2009, estimated
more than 300,000 deaths and about $125 billion in economic losses each year, and indicating that most
climate change induced mortality is due to worsening floods and droughts in developing countries.

KEY VULNERABILITIES

Most of the key vulnerabilities to climate change are related to climate phenomena that exceed thresholds
for adaptation; such as extreme weather events or abrupt climate change, as well as limited access to
resources (financial, technical, human, institutional) to cope. In 2007, the IPCC published a report of key
vulnerabilities of industry, settlements, and society to climate change.

HEALTH

Health risks are classified in to three categories

 Direct-acting effects (e.g. Due to heat waves, amplified air pollution, and physical weather disasters)
 Impacts mediated via climate-related changes in ecological systems and relationships (e.g. Crop
yields, mosquito ecology, marine productivity)
 The more diffuse (indirect) consequences relating to impoverishment, displacement, resource
conflicts (e.g. Water), and post-disaster mental health problems.

Impact of excess heat on the human body

 The human body requires evaporative cooling to prevent overheating, even with a low activity level.
With excessive ambient heat and humidity, adequate evaporative cooling does not take place. Human
thermoregulatory capacity is exceeded. A sustained wet-bulb temperature or Wet-bulb globe
temperature exceeding about 35 °C (95 °F) can be fatal.

Human response to heat stress can be hyperthermia, heat stroke and other harmful effects. Heat illness can
relate to many of the organs and systems including: brain, heart, kidneys, liver, etc

Impact on disease

Impact on vascular disease

  Impact of global warming on health can be seen in the disease erythromelalgia. This is a vascular

disease that is commonly triggered by the involvement of change in temperature, which leads to syndromes
including (first and second degree) burning pain, increased temperature, erythema and swelling, of mainly
the hands and feet that are affected.

Impact on infectious diseases

Warming oceans and a changing climate are resulting in extreme weather patterns which have
brought about an increase of infectious diseases—both new and re-emerging. These extreme weather
patterns are creating extended rainy seasons in some areas,] and extended periods of drought in others, as
well as introducing new climates to different regions. These extended seasons are creating climates that are
able to sustain vectors for longer periods of time, allowing them to multiply rapidly, and also creating
climates that are allowing the introduction and survival of new vectors.

Impact of warmer and wetter climates

Mosquito-borne diseases are probably the greatest threat to humans as they
include malaria, elephantiasis, Rift Valley fever, yellow fever, and dengue fever.

Impact of warmer oceans

The warming oceans are becoming a breeding ground for toxic algae blooms (also known as red tides)
and cholera. As the nitrogen and phosphorus levels in the oceans increase, the cholera bacteria that lives
within zooplankton emerge from their dormant state.. The changing winds and changing ocean currents push
the zooplankton toward the coastline, carrying the cholera bacteria, which then contaminate drinking water,
causing cholera outbreaks. As flooding increases there is also an increase in cholera epidemics as the flood
waters that are carrying the bacteria are infiltrating the drinking water supply. El Nino has also been linked
with cholera outbreaks because this weather pattern warms the shoreline waters, causing the cholera bacteria
to multiply rapidly.
Malaria
Increased precipitation like rain could increase the number of mosquitos indirectly by expanding larval
habitat and food supply. Malaria kills approximately 300,000 children (under age 5) annually, poses
an imminent threat through temperature increase . Models suggest, conservatively, that risk of malaria will
increase 5-15% by 2100 due to climate change. In Africa alone, according to the MARA Project (Mapping
Malaria Risk in Africa), there is a projected increase of 16–28% in person-month exposures to malaria by
2100.

Dengue

There are 4 distinct viruses responsible for Dengue: DENV-1, DENV-2, DENV-3, and DENV-4. Dengue
fever is spread by the bite of the female mosquito known as Aedes aegypti.

The mosquito, Aedes aegypti, lives and the amount of mosquitos present is strongly influenced by the
amount of water-bearing containers or pockets of standstill water in an area, daily temperature and variation
in temperature, moisture, and solar radiation. While dengue fever is primarily considered a tropical and
subtropical disease, the geographic ranges of the aedes aegypti are expanding. Globalization, trade, travel,
demographic trends, and warming temperatures are all attributed to the recent spread to this primary vector
of dengue.

Tick Borne Disease

A high humidity of greater than 85% is the best condition for a tick to start and finish its life cycle.  Studies
have indicated that temperature and vapor play a significant role in determining the range for tick
population. More specifically, maximum temperature has been found to play the most influential variable in
sustaining tick populations. Higher temperatures augment both hatching and developmental rates while
hindering overall survival. Temperature is so important to overall survival that an average monthly
minimum temperature of below -7 °C in the winter can prevent an area from maintaining established
populations.

Impact on mental health

The impact on mental health has only begun to be recognized in the last decade. According to 2011
in American Psychologist Clayton & Doherty, concluded that global climate change is bound to have
substantial negative impacts on mental health and wellbeing, effects which will primarily be felt by
vulnerable populations and those with pre-existing serious mental illness.

Direct impacts

Direct impacts on mental health happen when a community experiences extreme weather and

changed environment. Direct impacts like landscape changes, impaired place attachment, and psychological
trauma are all immediate and localized problems resulting from extreme weather events and environmental
changes. Extreme weather events cause negative changes to landscape and agriculture. This leads to
communities facing economic aspects, especially for communities that use agriculture as a main source of
income. After economic fall, communities face loss of livelihoods and poverty. Many communities will also
face isolation, alienation, grief, bereavement, and displacement from these effects. Individuals will have an
increased rate of anxiety and emotional stress. The rate of effects on mental health increases in already-
vulnerable communities.

Indirect impacts

Indirect impacts on mental health occur via impacts on physical health and community wellbeing.
Physical health and mental health have a reciprocal relationship. If the physical health of an individual is
negatively impacted, the decline in mental health will soon follow. These impacts are more gradual and
cumulative. They are threats to emotional wellbeing through concern and uncertainty about future risks.

Psychological impacts

Psychological impacts are the effects that heat, drought, migrations, and climate-related conflicts
have on social life and community life. This includes post-disaster adjustment. Most of these effects are
indirect instead of direct. Human migration of large communities causes discord within those communities
because the already scarce resources are even more limited during migration. Agriculture and aquaculture
are severely impacted by the extreme weather events of climate change, the suitability of territory being the
most notable kind of change. During and after migration, the geographical distribution of populations is
altered. Children and parents may be separated at these times. The early separation of kids from their parents
can cause symptoms of grieving, depression, and detachment in both the young and old. The loss in
resources can also lead to inter-community violence and aggression. Two groups may fight over
remaining natural resources. A community may choose to migrate to find better resources, and encroach on
another community's territory, either accidentally or purposefully.

Impact on natural resources

Drinking water

Global Health Corps reports that when interruptions in the regular water supply, "forces rural and
impoverished families to resort to drinking the dirty, sediment-and-parasite-laden water that sits in puddles
and small pools on the surface of the earth." Many are aware of the presence of contamination, but will drink
from these sources nonetheless in order to avoid dying of dehydration. It has been estimated that up to 80%
of human illness in the developing world can be attributed to contaminated water.

Fresh water

As the climate warms, it changes the nature of global rainfall, evaporation, snow, stream flow and
other factors that affect water supply and quality. Freshwater resources are highly sensitive to variations in
weather and climate. Climate change is projected to affect water availability. In areas where the amount of
water in rivers and streams depends on snow melting, warmer temperatures increase the fraction of
precipitation falling as rain rather than as snow, causing the annual spring peak in water runoff to occur
earlier in the year. This can lead to an increased likelihood of winter flooding and reduced late summer river
flows. Rising sea levels cause saltwater to enter into fresh underground water and freshwater streams. This
reduces the amount of freshwater available for drinking and farming. Warmer water temperatures also affect
water quality and accelerate water pollution.

MEASURES TO REDUCE GLOBAL WARMING

Burning fossil fuels such as natural gas, coal, oil and gasoline raises the level of carbon dioxide in
the atmosphere, and carbon dioxide is a major contributor to the greenhouse effect and global warming. You
can help to reduce the demand for fossil fuels, which in turn reduces global warming, by using energy more
wisely. Here are 10 simple actions you can take to help reduce global warming.

1. Reduce, Reuse, And Recycle:

Do to reduce waste by choosing reusable products instead of disposables. Buying products with
minimal packaging (including the economy size when that makes sense for you) will help to reduce waste.
And whenever you can, recycle paper, plastic, newspaper, glass and aluminum cans.

2. Use Less Heat and Air Conditioning:

Adding insulation to walls and attic, and installing weather stripping or caulking around doors and
windows can lower heating costs more than 25 percent, by reducing the amount of energy you need to heat
and cool home. Turn down the heat while you're sleeping at night or away during the day, and keep
temperatures moderate at all times. Setting your thermostat just 2 degrees lower in winter and higher in
summer could save about 2,000 pounds of carbon dioxide each year.

3. Change a light bulb:

Wherever practical, replace regular light bulbs with compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs.
Replacing just one 60-watt incandescent light bulb with a CFL will save you $30 over the life of the bulb.
CFLs also last 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs, use two-thirds less energy, and give off 70 percent
less heat. If every U.S. family replaced one regular light bulb with a CFL, it would eliminate 90 billion
pounds of greenhouse gases, the same as taking 7.5 million cars off the road.

4. Drive less and drive smart:

Less driving means fewer emissions. Besides saving gasoline, walking and biking are great forms of
exercise. Explore your community mass transit system, and check out options for carpooling to work or
school. When you do drive, make sure your car is running efficiently. For example, keeping your tries
properly inflated can improve your gas mileage by more than 3 percent. Every gallon of gas you save not
only helps your budget, it also keeps 20 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.
5. Buy Energy-Efficient Products:

When it's time to buy a new car, choose one that offers good gas mileage. Home appliances now
come in a range of energy efficient models, and compact florescent bulbs are designed to provide more
natural-looking light while using far less energy than standard light bulbs. Avoid products thatcome with
excess packaging, especially molded plastic and other packaging that can't be recycled. If you reduce your
household garbage by 10 percent, you can save 1,200 pounds of carbon dioxide annually.

6. Use Less Hot Water:

Set your water heater at 120 degrees to save energy, and wrap it in an insulating blanket if it is more
than 5 years old. Buy low-flow showerheads to save hot water and about 350 pounds of carbon dioxide
yearly. Wash your clothes in warm or cold water to reduce your use of hot water and the energy required to
produce it. That change alone can save at least 500 pounds of carbon dioxide annually in most households.
Use the energy-saving settings on your dishwasher and let the dishes air-dry.

7. Use the "Off" Switch:

Save electricity and reduce global warming by turning off lights when you leave a room, and using
only as much light as you need. And remember to turn off your television, video player, stereo and computer
when you're not using them. It's also a good idea to turn off the water when you're not using it. While
brushing your teeth, shampooing the dog or washing your car, turn off the water untilyou actually need it for
rinsing. You'll reduce your water bill and help to conserve a vital resource.

8. Plant a tree:

If you have the means to plant a tree, start digging. During photosynthesis, trees and other plants
absorb carbon dioxide and give off oxygen. They are an integral part of the natural atmospheric exchange
cycle here on Earth, but there are too few of them to fully counter the increases in carbon dioxide caused by
automobile traffic, manufacturing and other human activities. A single tree will absorb approximately one
ton of carbon dioxide during its lifetime.

9. Get a report card from your utility company:

Many utility companies provide free home energy audits to help consumers identify areas in their
homes that may not be energy efficient. In addition, many utility companies offer rebate programs to help
pay for the cost of energy-efficient upgrades.

10. Encourage Others to Conserve:

Share information about recycling and energy conservation with your friends, neighbors and co-
workers, and take opportunities to encourage public officials to establish programs and policies that are good
for the environment.
 GREEN HOUSE EFFECT
INTRODUCTION

Earth has an average surface temperature pleasurably between the boiling point and freezing
point of water, therefore suitable for our kind of life, cannot be clarified by merely proposing that planet
Earth orbits at just the precise space from the sun to absorb just the right amount of solar radiation. The
moderate temperatures are also the outcome of having just the precise kind of atmosphere. The atmosphere
in planet Venus would produce hellish, Venus-like conditions on planet Earth; the Mars troposphere
would leave earth shivering in a Martian-type deep freeze Earth has an average surface temperature
pleasurably between the boiling point and freezing point of water, therefore suitable for our kind of
life, cannot be clarified by merely proposing that planet Earth orbits at just the precise space from the
sun to absorb just the right amount of solar radiation. The moderate temperatures are also the outcome of
having just the precise kind of atmosphere. Additionally, parts of the earth’s atmosphere act as shielding
blanket of just the right thickness, receiving appropriate solar energy to keep the global average
temperature in an amusing range. The Martian blanket is too thin, and the Venusian blanket is way too
thick. The conversation of inbound and outward-bound radiation that warms the Earth is often referred to
as the greenhouse effect
DEFINITION
The greenhouse effect is the process by which radiation from a planet's atmosphere warms the planet's
surface to a temperature above what it would be without this atmosphere.

The greenhouse effect is a process that occurs when gases in Earth's atmosphere trap the Sun's heat. This
process makes Earth much warmer than it would be without an atmosphere. The greenhouse effect is one of
the things that make Earth a comfortable place to live.
NASA

HISTORY
 The existence of the greenhouse effect was argued for by Joseph Fourier in 1824.
 The argument and the evidence were further strengthened by Claude Pouillet in 1827 and 1838 and
reasoned from experimental observations by Eunice Newton Foote in 1856.
  John Tyndall expanded her work in 1859 by measuring radiative properties of a wider spectrum of
greenhouse gases.]
  The effect was more fully quantified by Svante Arrhenius in 1896
 The term "greenhouse" was first used in this way by Nils Gustaf Ekholm in 1901.

From the beginning of the Industrial Revolution through the end of the 20th century, the amount of carbon
dioxide in the atmosphere increased by roughly 30 percent and the amount of methane more than doubled. A
number of scientists have predicted that human-related increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide and other
greenhouse gases could lead by the end of the 21st century to an increase in the global average temperature
of 0.3 to 4.8 °C (0.5 to 8.6 °F) relative to the 1986–2005 average. This global warming could alter
Earth’s climates and thereby produce new patterns

GLOBAL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS

 In 2010, estimated worldwide emissions from human activities totaled nearly 46 billion metric tons
of greenhouse gases, expressed as carbon dioxide equivalents. This represents a 35 percent increase
from 1990 (see Figures 1 and 2). These numbers represent net emissions, which include the effects of
land use and forestry.
 Between 1990 and 2010, global emissions of all major greenhouse gases increased (see Figure 1).
Net emissions of carbon dioxide increased by 42 percent, which is particularly important because
carbon dioxide accounts for about three-fourths of total global emissions. Nitrous oxide emissions
increased the least—9 percent—while emissions of methane increased by 15 percent. Emissions of
fluorinated gases more than doubled.
 Energy production and use (including fuels used by vehicles) represent the largest source of
greenhouse gas emissions worldwide (about 71 percent of the total in 2010), followed by agriculture
(13 percent in 2010) (see Figure 2). While land-use change and forestry represent a net sink for
emissions in the United States, absorbing carbon dioxide and offsetting emissions from other sources
(see the U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions indicator), these activities are a net source of emissions on a
global scale, largely because of deforestation.
 Carbon dioxide emissions are increasing faster in some parts of the world (for example, Asia) than in
others (see Figure 3). The majority of emissions come from three regions: Asia, Europe, and the
United States, which together accounted for 88 percent of total global emissions in 2012.

HOW DOES THE GREENHOUSE EFFECT WORK?

Step 1: Solar radiation reaches the Earth's atmosphere - some of this is reflected back into space.
Step 2: The rest of the sun's energy is absorbed by the land and the oceans, heating the Earth.
Step 3: Heat radiates from Earth towards space.
Step 4: Some of this heat is trapped by greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, keeping the Earth warm enough
to sustain life.
Step 5: Human activities such as burning fossil fuels, agriculture and land clearing are increasing the
amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere.
Step 6: This is trapping extra heat, and causing the Earth's temperature to rise.
 Earth receives energy from the Sun in the form of ultraviolet, visible, and near-infrared radiation.
About 26% of the incoming solar energy is reflected to space by the atmosphere and clouds, and 19% is
absorbed by the atmosphere and clouds. Most of the remaining energy is absorbed at the surface of
Earth. Because the Earth's surface is colder than the Sun, it radiates at wavelengths that are much
longer than the wavelengths that were absorbed. Most of this thermal radiation is absorbed by the
atmosphere and warms it. The atmosphere also gains heat by sensible and latent heat fluxes from the
surface. The atmosphere radiates energy both upwards and downwards; the part radiated downwards is
absorbed by the surface of Earth. This leads to a higher equilibrium temperature than if the atmosphere did
not radiate.

An ideal thermally conductive blackbody at the same distance from the Sun as Earth would have a
temperature of about 5.3 °C (41.5 °F). However, because Earth reflects about 30% of the incoming sunlight,
this idealized planet's effective temperature (the temperature of a blackbody that would emit the same
amount of radiation) would be about −18 °C (0 °F). The surface temperature of this hypothetical planet is
33 °C (59 °F) below Earth's actual surface temperature of approximately 14 °C (57 °F). The greenhouse
effect is the contribution of greenhouse gases to this difference.

TYPES
NATUARAL GREEN HOUSE EFFECT

Energy emitted from the sun ("solar radiation") is concentrated in a region of short wavelengths
including visible light. Much of the short wave solar radiation travels down through the Earth’s atmosphere
to the surface virtually unimpeded. Some of the solar radiation is reflected straight back into space by clouds
and by the earth’s surface. Much of the solar radiation is absorbed at the earth’s surface, causing the surface
and the lower parts of the atmosphere to warm.

The warmed Earth emits radiation upwards, just as a hot stove or bar heater radiates energy. In the absence
of any atmosphere, the upward radiation from the Earth would balance the incoming energy absorbed from
the Sun at a mean surface temperature of around -18°C, 33° colder than the observed mean surface
temperature of the Earth. The presence of "greenhouse" gases in the atmosphere accounts for the
temperature difference. Heat radiation (infra-red) emitted by the Earth is concentrated at long wavelengths
and is strongly absorbed by greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, such as water vapour, carbon dioxide and
methane. Absorption of heat causes the atmosphere to warm and emit its own infra-red radiation. The
Earth’s surface and lower atmosphere warm until they reach a temperature where the infra-red radiation
emitted back into space, plus the directly reflected solar radiation, balance the absorbed energy coming in
from the sun. As a result, the surface temperature of the globe is around 15°C on average, 33 °C warmer
than it would be if there was no atmosphere. This is called the natural greenhouse effect.

HUMAN ENHANCED GREENHOUSE EFFECT

Activities man by humans result in production of greenhouse gases. Greenhouse effects caused by
burning , fossil fuels coal, oil, natural gases, cutting and burning trees producing carbon dioxide
Greenhouse gases trap heat making earth harmer and creating global warming . Then they will absorb more
of the infra-red radiation. The Earth’s surface and the lower atmosphere will warm further until a balance of
incoming and outgoing radiation is reached again (the emission of infra-red radiation increases as the
temperature of the emitting body rises). This extra warming is called the enhanced greenhouse effect.
The magnitude of the enhanced greenhouse effect is influenced by various complex interactions in the earth-
ocean-atmosphere system

For example, as the temperature of the earth’s surface increases more water vapour is evaporated. Since
water vapour is itself a strong greenhouse gas this is a positive feedback which will tend to amplify the
warming effect of carbon dioxide emissions. 

GREENHOUSE GASES

There are several different types of greenhouse gases. The major ones are carbon dioxide, water
vapor, methane, and nitrous oxide. These gas molecules all are made of three or more atoms. The atoms are
held together loosely enough that they vibrate when they absorb heat. Eventually, the vibrating molecules
release the radiation, which will likely be absorbed by another greenhouse gas molecule. This process keeps
heat near the Earth’s surface.

Most of the gas in the atmosphere is nitrogen and oxygen – both of which are molecules made of two
atoms. The atoms in these molecules are bound together tightly and unable to vibrate, so they cannot absorb
heat and contribute to the greenhouse effect.

Greenhouse gas measurements

Since pre-industrial times, the background atmospheric concentrations of many greenhouse gases have
grown significantly. Over the last 250 years the carbon dioxide concentration (CO2) has increased by about
36%, methane concentration (CH4) has increased by 2.5-fold (ie, by 150%), and nitrous oxide concentration
(N2O) by about 16% (Forster et al., 2007).

This figure illustrates this for all three greenhouse gases. The present global mean carbon dioxide
concentration (around 379 parts per million) has not been exceeded during the past 750,000 years, and
probably not for the past 20 million years. The growth in carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide
concentrations is due largely to human activities including fossil fuel combustion, deforestation and
agriculture. The growth rates of methane and nitrous oxide also fluctuate from year to year, but their long-
term trend is again upwards.

The rate at which carbon dioxide is increasing varies from year to year as shown in Figure. The
average rate of increase since 1980 is 0.4% per year.

Carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide (CO2)

It is the most common GHG emitted by human activities, in terms of the quantity released and the
total impact on global warming.  As a result the term “CO2” is sometimes used as a shorthand expression for
all greenhouse gases, however, this can cause confusion, and a more accurate way of referring to a number
of GHGs collectively is to use the term “carbon dioxide equivalent” or “CO2e” (explained below).   Because
CO2 is considered the most important greenhouse gas some GHG assessments or reports only include CO2,
and don’t consider the other greenhouse gases, and this can lead to an understatement of total global
warming impact.  Greenhouse gas inventories are more complete if they include all GHGs and not just CO2.

Carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e)

Carbon dioxide equivalent or “CO2e” is a term for describing different greenhouse gases in a common
unit.  For any quantity and type of greenhouse gas, CO2e signifies the amount of CO2 which would have the
equivalent global warming impact. A quantity of GHG can be expressed as CO2e by multiplying the amount
of the GHG by its GWP.  E.g. if 1kg of methane is emitted, this can be expressed as 25kg of CO2e (1kg
CH4 * 25 = 25kg CO2e). “CO2e” is a very useful term for a number of reasons: it allows “bundles” of
greenhouse gases to be expressed as a single number; and it allows different bundles of GHGs to be easily
compared (in terms of their total global warming impact). However, one word of caution when comparing
CO2e totals is that it is important to know that the same GHGs are included in the totals being compared, in
order to be sure that like‐for‐like comparisons can be made. It is also worth noting that “CO2e” is also
sometimes written as “CO2eq”, “CO2equivalent”, or even “CDE”, and these terms can be used
interchangeably

Carbon

Carbon is a chemical element which is present in many gases and compounds.  For example, carbon
combines with oxygen to make carbon dioxide (CO2), and combines with hydrogen to make methane
(CH4).  The term “carbon” is used in a variety of ways when talking about greenhouse gas emissions, and
therefore tends to be ambiguous and potentially confusing.  “Carbon” is sometimes used as shorthand for
referring to CO2, or greenhouse gases in general, and it can also be used to express CO2 emissions in terms
of the amount of carbon in the CO2.

The atomic weight of a carbon atom is 12 and the atomic weight of oxygen is 16, so the total atomic
weight of CO2 is 44 (12 + (16 * 2) = 44).  This means that a quantity of CO2 can be expressed in terms of
the amount of carbon it contains by multiplying the amount of CO2 by 0.27 (12/44).  E.g. 1kg of CO2 can
be expressed as 0.27kg of carbon, as this is the amount of carbon in the CO2. The term “carbon” can be
confusing as it is used as a shorthand expression to refer to either just CO2 or to greenhouse gases in general
(although not all GHGs contain carbon!).  In addition, converting CO2 to carbon is not particularly useful as
doing so does not allow comparisons between different GHGs, in the way that converting to CO2e does.  As
a result it is less and less common to see CO2 emissions reported in terms of “carbon”, though shorthand
terms such as “carbon accounting” and “low carbon economy” are still used as popular proxies for “GHG
accounting” or “low GHG economy”.

Methane (CH4): 

The main component of natural gas, methane is released from landfills, natural gas and petroleum
industries, and agriculture (especially from the digestive systems of grazing animals). A molecule of
methane doesn't stay in the atmosphere as long as a molecule of carbon dioxide—about 12 years—but it is
at least 84 times more potent over two decades. It accounts for about 16 percent of all greenhouse gas
emissions.

Nitrous Oxide (N2O): 

Nitrous oxide occupies a relatively small share of global greenhouse gas emissions—about six
percent—but it is 264 times more powerful than carbon dioxide over 20 years, and its lifetime in the
atmosphere exceeds a century, according to the IPCC. Agriculture and livestock, including fertilizer,
manure, and burning of agricultural residues, along with burning fuel, are the biggest  sources of nitrous
oxide emissions.

Industrial gases:
 Fluorinated gases such as hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, chlorofluorocarbons, sulfur
hexafluoride (SF6), and nitrogen trifluoride (NF 3) have heat-trapping potential thousands of times greater
than CO2 and stay in the atmosphere for hundreds to thousands of years. Accounting for about 2 percent of
all emissions, they're used as refrigerants, solvents, and in manufacturing, sometimes occurring as
byproducts.

Other greenhouse gases include  water vapor and ozone (O3).

Water vapor is actually the world's most abundant greenhouse gas, but it is not tracked the same
way as other greenhouse gases because it is not directly emitted by human activity and its effects are not
well understood. Similarly, ground-level or tropospheric ozone (not to be confused with the protective
stratospheric ozone layer higher up) is not emitted directly but emerges from complex reactions among
pollutants in the air.

REAL GREENHOUSES

The "greenhouse effect" of the atmosphere is named by analogy to greenhouses which become
warmer in sunlight. However, a greenhouse is not primarily warmed by the "greenhouse
effect"."Greenhouse effect" is actually a misnomer since heating in the usual greenhouse is due to the
reduction of convection, while the "greenhouse effect" works by preventing absorbed heat from leaving
the structure through radiative transfer.

A greenhouse is built of any material that passes sunlight: usually glass or plastic. The sun warms the
ground and contents inside just like the outside, and these then warm the air. Outside, the warm air near
the surface rises and mixes with cooler air aloft, keeping the temperature lower than inside, where the air
continues to heat up because it is confined within the greenhouse. This can be demonstrated by opening a
small window near the roof of a greenhouse: the temperature will drop considerably. It was demonstrated
experimentally (R. W. Wood, 1909) that a (not heated) "greenhouse" with a cover of rock salt (which is
transparent to infrared) heats up an enclosure similarly to one with a glass cover. Thus greenhouses work
primarily by preventing convective cooling.
CONCLUSION

Human activity (burning fossil fuel, changes in land use, air pollution, etc.) must be seen in relation
to other factors—Earth’s orbital changes, solar variability, and natural cycles— particularly in the oceans. If
the stakes weren’t so high, this would be one of the most fascinating scientific problems of our time, since it
combines so many biological, chemical, and physical processes in a great, chaotic, and complex system. But
if we are correct, the effect of human-produced GHGs is a recognizable factor in the observed warming of
the global climate.