The Causes and Effects of Global Warming

Global warming is changing our world forever. Without realising we and other fellow humans pollute the earth for selfish reasons. There may not be a future for our grandchildren if we carry on this way. The Earth is getting hotter and hotter but it’s not too late to stop this.

The main cause for Global Warming is greenhouse gases. What are greenhouse gases? you may be asking yourself. When the sun gives off heat radiation some of it goes into space but some of it comes to earth. It is our only natural source of heat, it heats up the earth and without it we would be in sub zero temperatures. When it reaches the earth it is absorbed and then Earth gives off its own radiation, this is radiated to Space but some of it gets stuck just below the atmosphere in a layer of greenhouse gases. It can’t escape so stays in the earth’s atmosphere making our earth just that little bit warmer. With this happening continuously the earth is going to heat up rapidly. The atmosphere is made up by:

6% is Nitride Oxide

12% is Ozone

14% comes from aerosols

18% is Methane

50% is Carbon Dioxide

Some of these gases are in the atmosphere naturally e.g. Ozone, but a lot of them were put there by us. They come from vehicles, power stations and factories which we use daily. In Germany a recent study was conducted and it showed how much carbon dioxide is given out and by what:

5% from domestic heating

15% from power stations

20% from industry

60% from transport

Our earth is mainly being destroyed by everyday use of vehicles which is polluting our world enormously.

The carbon dioxide in the atmosphere could be lessened if we planted more trees because trees breathe in carbon dioxide and out oxygen. We aren’t planting more trees though; we are digging them up so that we can make more factories, roads, houses, paper etc…

It is called greenhouse gases because in a greenhouse the heat is absorbed and heats up the greenhouse but can’t escape. This is what is happening to our earth.

You may be asking yourself what will be the end result of all this? Well not all is bad as places like the UK will have a warmer climate and have more sunny days on the beach going further into winter and we could grow tropical fruits and plants. However the countries that are already hot will become fatal living conditions as the water will evaporate and there will be more dessert. Some species will become extinct because they need a cooler climate but in the UK we will have tropical species living among us.

Other species will become extinct too, for example; with all the hot weather the ice in the Arctic will begin to melt. The particles will vibrate quicker and expand making the sea level rise up to 5 metres. Polar bears will have no where to live and eventually die out. In Alaska the polar bears are predicted to die out before 2050. As soon as the ice caps melt the balance between the salt and water will change completely and we will face an ice age.

Some movies such as:’’2012’’ and ‘’ The day after Tomorrow’’ show that with the sea level rising comes disappearance of some places like Edinburgh, Preston, London, New York, Middlesbrough, Bristol, Carlisle, Isle of Man and many more

Our future and the planet earth are in jeopardy. It is our duty to to protect our planet and keep it safe for our children and our children's children.

With everyone’s help we can stop and reduce carbon dioxide and save our planet.

But what happens in the future is and always will be our responsibility!

There is no planet B!

If you have anything to add to make people more aware of how serious the problem is I would be very grateful if you would do so in the comment box under this hub.

I have also included a video that explains it all so simply. Please take the time to watch. 

Thank you.