Global Warming

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By: Guan Hong Chen GLOBAL WARMING

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Global warming Global warming is the increase in the average temperature of the Earth's near-surface air and the oceans since the mid-twentieth century and its projected continuation. Global surface temperature increased 0.74 ± 0.18 °C (1.33 ± 0.32 °F) during the 100 years ending in 2005.[1][A] The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concludes that anthropogenic greenhouse gases are responsible for most of the observed temperature increase since the middle of the twentieth century,[1] and that natural phenomena such as solar variation and volcanoes probably had a small warming effect from pre-industrial times to 1950 and a small cooling effect afterward.[2][3] These basic conclusions have been endorsed by more than 40 scientific societies and academies of science,[B] including all of the national academies of science of the major industrialized countries.[4][5]

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Cause Co2 Carbon dioxide (chemical formula: CO2) is a chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom. It is a gas at standard temperature and pressure and exists in Earth's atmosphere in this state. Within the atmosphere it is currently at a globally averaged concentration of approximately 387 ppm by volume.[1][2] Atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide fluctuate slightly with the change of the seasons, driven primarily by seasonal plant growth in the Northern Hemisphere. Concentrations of carbon dioxide fall during the northern spring and summer as plants consume the gas, and rise during the northern autumn and winter as plants go dormant, die and decay. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas as it transmits visible light but absorbs strongly in the infrared and near-infrared. Carbon dioxide is used by plants during photosynthesis to make sugars which may either be consumed again in respiration or used as the raw material to produce polysaccharides such as starch and cellulose, proteins and the wide variety of other organic compounds required for plant growth and development. It is produced during respiration by plants, and by all animals, fungi and microorganisms that depend on living and decaying plants for food, either directly or indirectly. It is, therefore, a major component of the carbon cycle. Carbon dioxide is generated as a by-product of the combustion of fossil fuels or the burning of vegetable matter, among other chemical processes. Large amounts of carbon dioxide are emitted from volcanoes and other geothermal processes such as hot springs and geysers and by the dissolution of carbonates in crustal rocks. Carbon dioxide has no liquid state at pressures below 5.1 atm. At 1 atm the gas deposits directly to a solid at temperatures below -78 °C and the solid sublimes directly to a gas above -78 °C. In its solid state, carbon dioxide is commonly called dry ice. CO2 is an acidic oxide: an aqueous solution turns litmus from blue to pink. CO2 is toxic in higher concentrations: 1% (10,000 ppm) will make some people feel drowsy[citation needed]. Concentrations of 7% to 10% cause dizziness, headache, visual and hearing dysfunction, and unconsciousness within a few minutes to an hour.[3]

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Fossil fuels Fossil fuels or mineral fuels are fossil source fuels, that is, carbon or hydrocarbons found in the earth’s crust. Fossil fuel range from volatile materials with low carbon:hydrogen ratios like methane, to liquid petroleum to nonvolatile materials composed of almost pure carbon, like anthracite coal. Methane can be found in hydrocarbon fields, alone, associated with oil, or in the form of methane clathrates. It is generally accepted that they formed from the fossilized remains of dead plants and animals[1] by exposure to heat and pressure in the Earth's crust over hundreds of millions of years.[2] This biogenic theory was first introduced by Georg Agricola in 1556 and later by Mikhail Lomonosov in the 18th century.

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Polar bears spend most of their time roaming the Arctic on large chunks of floating ice, finding mates, hunting for seals and fattening themselves up for the warmer, ice-free months of the year. Yet that ice -- so crucial for the bears’ survival -- is now melting under their feet due to global warming. Over the past three decades the Arctic ice cap has shrunk by 1 million square miles -- an area six times the size of California. Scientists are finding more evidence of polar bear drownings, cannibalism, starvation and cub deaths. Unless we take effective action now, the polar bear will likely become extinct in Alaska by 2050. In May 2008, under legal pressure from NRDC and others, the Bush administration announced that it would protect polar bears as a "threatened species" under the Endangered Species Act. Despite that important step forward, the plan as written is deeply flawed. It will do nothing to protect the polar bear against oil development or global warming pollution -- two of the deadliest threats it faces. In the meantime, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has joined powerful industry allies in a blatant attempt to strip the bear of the new protections it has under the law. As NRDC and our partners fight off these threats in court, we are mobilizing BioGems Defenders to call on the Obama administration to reverse President Bush’s “polluters-first” policy and grant polar bears the full-fledged protection they so desperately need. Tell the Obama administration to protect the polar bear and its Arctic habitat. Polar bear ice caps melting

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Rise and co2 connected The Earth has been warming since 1910, with a temperature maximum reached in the 1990’s. (The year 2001 is now the second warmest year on record, according to the World Meteorological Organization.) The scientific conclusion reached is that warming is real. But is this warming man-made? Carbon dioxide has been rising since the time of James Watt (1736 – 1819), inventor of the auto-controlled steam engine that helped jump-start the industrial revolution. Since then, coal, oil and natural gas have powered our economies. Hydro-power and nuclear power are comparatively minor contributors to energy needs (excepting certain countries such as Norway and France). Today the amount of carbon dumped globally into the atmosphere corresponds, on average, to one ton per person on the planet, each year. In the United States, carbon-based energy is especially important. The average American per capita emission is 5 tons of carbon annually. In Sweden (with a similar standard of living as the US) the carbon output is less than two tons of carbon per person per year. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas – it traps heat radiation that is attempting to escape from Earth. The physics of this process was established by the Irish physicist John Tyndall (1820 – 1891) and the effect was calculated by Swedish chemist Santé Arrhenius (1859 – 1927).

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Global warming cause climate change Climate model projections summarized in the latest IPCC report indicate that global surface temperature will likely rise a further 1.1 to 6.4 °C (2.0 to 11.5 °F) during the twenty-first century.[1] The uncertainty in this estimate arises from the use of models with differing climate sensitivity, and the use of differing estimates of future greenhouse gas emissions. Some other uncertainties include how warming and related changes will vary from region to region around the globe. Most studies focus on the period up to 2100. However, warming is expected to continue beyond 2100, even if emissions stop, because of the large heat capacity of the oceans and the long lifetime of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.[6][7] Increasing global temperature will cause sea levels to rise and will change the amount and pattern of precipitation, likely including expansion of subtropical deserts.[8] The continuing retreat of glaciers, permafrost and sea ice is expected, with the Arctic region being particularly affected. Other likely effects include shrinkage of the Amazon rainforest and Boreal forests, increases in the intensity of extreme weather events, species extinctions and changes in agricultural yields. Political and public debate continues regarding the appropriate response to global warming. The available options are mitigation to reduce further emissions; adaptation to reduce the damage caused by warming; and, more speculatively, reengineering to reverse global warming. Most national governments have signed and ratified the Kyoto Protocol aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. A successor to the first commitment period of the Kyoto protocol is expected to be agreed at the COP15 talks in December 2009.

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10 piece of evidence that provide global warming is occurrings

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Cause of sea level rise Current sea level rise is occurring at a rate of around 1.8 mm per year for the past century,[1][2] mainly as a result of human-induced global warming.[3] This rate is increasing; measurements from the period 1993–2003 indicated a mean rate of 3.1 mm/year.[4] Global warming will continue to increase sea level over at least the coming century.[5] Increasing temperatures result in sea level rise by the thermal expansion of water and through the addition of water to the oceans from the melting of continental ice sheets. Thermal expansion, which is well-quantified, is currently the primary contributor to sea level rise and is expected to be the primary contributor over the course of the next century. Glacial contributions to sea-level rise are less important,[6] and are more difficult to predict and quantify.[6] Values for predicted sea level rise over the course of the next century typically range from 90 to 880 mm, with a central value of 480 mm. Based on an analog to the delectation of North America at 9,000 years before present, some scientists predict sea level rise of 1.3 meters in the next century.[7][8] However, models of glacial flow in the smaller present-day ice sheets show that a probable maximum value for sea level rise in the next century is 80 centimeters, based on limitations on how quickly ice can flow below the equilibrium line altitude and to the sea.[9]

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Storms getting stronger "If we look over the entire globe, we see that the strongest tropical cyclones are actually getting stronger. And this increase is most notable over the North Atlantic and also the northern Indian Oceans." The researchers found that the top wind speeds in the strongest tropical cyclones have been increasing. And, the stronger the cyclone, the bigger the increase. Scientists say these storms pick up energy from the warm water they pass over. Elsner says that's really a simplified version of what's happening. "And this thermodynamic theory of hurricane intensification says that, with all else being equal, the warmer the ocean, the stronger the storms," he said in an interview. "So it stands to reason that if the theory is correct we should see increases in the intensity of the strongest storms with the warming ocean." And that's exactly what they saw. For their study, Elsner and his colleagues examined the top wind speed in a range of storms, from weak to strong.

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Polar bears are in danger of extinction the polar bear has been declared a threatened species by the Department of the Interior. What's more shocking than the commercials or the addition to the threatened species list was the statement made shortly afterward - that their road to the endangered species list has no relation to climate change.As the polar ice caps continue to melt and temperatures continue to rise worldwide, there is plenty of evidence to prove that if the polar bear were to become an endangered species, global warming would surely be a factor. Secretary of the Department of the Interior Dirk Kempt Horne said one of the major factors of the decline of polar bears was melting sea ice in the Arctic. That is more than enough reason to prove climate change is causing the future endangerment of the bears. Kempt Horne even went on to say they would most likely be close to extinction in the coming years because the ice will continue to melt.

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Greenhouse effect It's when the temperature rises because of different types of gases are trapped from the Sun. Without these gases, heat would escape back into space and Earth’s average temperature would be about 60ºF colder. Because of how the world is warmed, we call it the greenhouse effect.

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3 types of alternative energy One: Hydro Power - This is formed by using a small water generator that is known as micro-hybrid turbines that are put into the flowing water's stream.Two: Solar Power - This type of alternative energy is made by converting sunlight into electricity using cells make from silicon, which, when it is exposed to sunlight it will create an electric charge.Three: Wind Power - This energy is created by a turbine that is placed on a tall tower and uses wind to kinetically produce electricity.Four: Ethanol - This is one alternative fuel that is made to replace gasoline in vehicles. It is made from ethyl alcohol, which is a common alcohol that is made using corn or wheat.Five: Biodiesel - This is an alternative fuel that is for petroleum diesel and is made from vegetable oils and animal fats.Six: Hydrogen - This alternative energy is the most abundant element in the world and it can be made from fossil fuels, biomass or by electrolyzing water.

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3 things that I can help improve global warming Drive less: walk, bike, carpool or take mass transit more often. Use less hot water: it take lot of energy to heat water. Plant a tree: a single tree will absorb one ton of carbon dioxide over its lifetime.

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Different between natural greenhouse effect and man- made greenhouse effect The greenhouse effect is itself natural, and without it we would be very cold. About 60 degrees colder than we are now, in fact. Global warming is caused by enhancing this greenhouse effect, via the emission of carbon dioxide, methane, and other "greenhouse gasses". These are mostly emitted through the combustion of fossil fuels, deforestation, and agriculture.