Global warming and the climate change is something we all contribute to in a negative way but can all begin to contribute to in a positive way. An understanding of what global warming is and why it is happening is the first step towards making a positive difference in the world today. Yes it is happening and the earth is already starting to show serious signs of global warming. Average temperatures have climbed 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit around the world since 1880; a great deal of this increase has been within the past few decades. This is not the only evidence that the earth is changing but it is solid evidence that cannot be ignored any longer.
The Arctic are feeling the affects the most as their temperatures have risen to be twice their average over the past few decades. With glaciers melting and their climate increasingly getting warmer many of those living in Alaska and other Arctic areas are not sure what to do. Glaciers throughout the rest of the world are rapidly melting as well. For example, Montana's Glacier National Park now has only 27 glaciers, versus 150 in 1910. Just watching the news today should be enough to show you that the earth is changing by watching the extreme and severe weather occurring throughout the entire world.
Now that you can see the effects global warming is having on our earth today let's focus on the causes of global warming. Over 2,000 scientists conducted research to discover the causes of global warming and found that humans are responsible for all or at least most of the global warming conditions. The actions and choices we make throughout each and every day and year make a difference in the world and environment we live in. Until recently, we have been taking this for granted and now the time is crucial to rectify this situation. Actions such as industrialization, deforestation, and pollution have greatly increased atmospheric concentrations of water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. All of which are greenhouse gases that help trap heat near Earth's surface, causing global warming.
Basically, humans are pouring carbon dioxide into the atmosphere faster and at a higher rate than plants and the oceans can absorb it. It is important to understand that these types of gases persist in the atmosphere for years. This means that even if all the gas emissions were to completely stop today this would not end global warming immediately as we would like to hope. As you can imagine the longer our planet suffers from these gases and emissions the more severe the results are going to be.
Many people are wondering today what is going to happen and experts are reporting nothing less than large scale food and water shortages as well as large scale devastation to the wildlife throughout the world. Studies have also shown that the average sea level from around the world has risen by 4.8-8.8 inches during the last century. What many people do not realize is that a great deal of the world's population is coastal and it will only take a few more inches to 1 foot to wipe out a great deal of the earth's population. The sea levels are incredibly delicate just like the climate systems we are trying to alter. The sea level could rise between 7-23 inches as the northern parts of the world continue to melt and flood. Even a slight rise of 4inches is enough to flood many of the southern islands by the end of this century. As we are seeing severe weather today, this is only going to increase as the effects of global warming continue to escalate. We can expect hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, wildfires and heat waves everyone and anywhere in the world.
As you may have guessed as the average global temperatures continue to increase so does the average amount of participation we receive. Precipitation has generally increased over land north of 30°N from 1900-2005, but has mostly declined over the tropics since the 1970s. This type of information and comparison can be used with the severity and duration of storm systems as well. Following the Atlantic hurricane season of 2005, which set a record with 27 named storms, a great deal of attention has focused on the relationship between hurricanes and climate change.
Sadly, humans are not the only ones facing this catastrophe. Scientists state that over 1,000,000 species face extinction in the years to come and for humans this means a large scale depletion of the food chain. As the earth continues to change, so does the wildlife habitats and this is enough to cause extinction of millions of animals throughout the world.
Everything on earth is part of a delicate balance and when one factor is slightly altered one way or the other it is going to affect every other factor involved in the cycle. Global warming is no different than this. As the temperatures continue to rise we experience more precipitation which contributes to the higher sea levels and puts the coastal communities further at risk. The melting of the polar ice is another contributor to the sea level increase and all should be accounted for.
There are dozens of important global warming facts that everyone should be aware of in order to properly educate yourself on what is happening to our world as we speak. Unfortunately there is no off switch for this type of crisis and even when we do limit the greenhouse gases responsible for much of this problem it will take decades to slow the effects down.
In order to avoid this type of fate in our future it is important that we all learn how to deal with global warming in our own lives by making eco-smart decisions in everything we do. There are more and more ways to start living and caring for the earth and the environment. Often it can be more expensive to make this environmentally friendly choices but it is worth it in the long run. Even if we are not the ones who suffer the ultimate fate of global warming we are the ones who can prevent it. Learning facts about global warming is the only way to fully understand what we can all do.
Communication Manager for http://www.theglobalwarmingoverview.com An unbiased platform about global warming and the environment. Facts, articles, statistics, debate, actions to help each one of us learn and take educated actions. |
