Greenhouse Gases
Sam Howell 5/30/13
English Final Draft
Do you ever wonder why last summer was one of the hottest summers worldwide on record or why some recent winters have been among the warmest ever recorded? Do you also wonder why disastrous weather events like super-storm Sandy continue to increase in their frequency and severity? Many modern scientists attribute these dangerous environmental trends of global warming to the ‘greenhouse effect’.
The ‘greenhouse effect’ results from greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide rising into the atmosphere, trapping infrared radiation from the sun, and emitting ultraviolet radiation that can puncture the earth’s stratospheric ozone layer. A healthy ozone layer should prevent this from happening, but the ozone layer has deteriorated quite considerably due to the world’s continuously increasing burning of fossil fuels and the vast overuse of fossil fuel-powered vehicles. As a result, the earth’s average temperature has been rising tremendously, causing changes in weather patterns that can precipitate more epic natural disasters. Aside from Hurricane Sandy, other domestic examples of these types of events include larger and more frequent forest fires, an increased frequency of hurricanes and tropical storms, and mega-tornadoes like the one that recently ravaged parts of Oklahoma. Other worldwide global warming trends include increased flooding, rising tides, and the rapid melting of polar icecaps.
As described above, greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere trap harmful infrared radiation from the Sun, heating up and changing the climate. This ‘trapped’ infrared radiation transforms into ultraviolet radiation which pokes holes in the atmospheric ozone layer and exposes the earth’s surface and all of its’ inhabitant species. Clearly, the greenhouse effect impacts humans significantly. If the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere were too low, then the earth would remain too cold to sustain life.
English Final Draft
Do you ever wonder why last summer was one of the hottest summers worldwide on record or why some recent winters have been among the warmest ever recorded? Do you also wonder why disastrous weather events like super-storm Sandy continue to increase in their frequency and severity? Many modern scientists attribute these dangerous environmental trends of global warming to the ‘greenhouse effect’.
The ‘greenhouse effect’ results from greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide rising into the atmosphere, trapping infrared radiation from the sun, and emitting ultraviolet radiation that can puncture the earth’s stratospheric ozone layer. A healthy ozone layer should prevent this from happening, but the ozone layer has deteriorated quite considerably due to the world’s continuously increasing burning of fossil fuels and the vast overuse of fossil fuel-powered vehicles. As a result, the earth’s average temperature has been rising tremendously, causing changes in weather patterns that can precipitate more epic natural disasters. Aside from Hurricane Sandy, other domestic examples of these types of events include larger and more frequent forest fires, an increased frequency of hurricanes and tropical storms, and mega-tornadoes like the one that recently ravaged parts of Oklahoma. Other worldwide global warming trends include increased flooding, rising tides, and the rapid melting of polar icecaps.
As described above, greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere trap harmful infrared radiation from the Sun, heating up and changing the climate. This ‘trapped’ infrared radiation transforms into ultraviolet radiation which pokes holes in the atmospheric ozone layer and exposes the earth’s surface and all of its’ inhabitant species. Clearly, the greenhouse effect impacts humans significantly. If the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere were too low, then the earth would remain too cold to sustain life.