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Global Warming
The earth is wrapped in a blanket of air called the
'atmosphere' which is actually made up of several layers
of gases. The suns heat is very hot and it gives off
rays of this heat (radiation) that travel through our
atmosphere. These rays warm and heat our planet then
heat from the earth travels back out into the atmosphere.
This exchange of heat is called the energy budget and
since different parts of the planet are different temperatures
its localized but is in a state or should be of equilibrium.
The gases in our atmosphere stop some of the heat from
escaping into space and these are called greenhouse
gases because they work to keep some of the warmth in.
The natural process between the sun, the atmosphereand
the earth is called the 'Greenhouse Effect'
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Greenhouse Effect
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To make sure the temperature remains constant the
balance of these gases in the atmosphere must not be
upset.
The greenhouse gases are very important. They are made
up of.
- water vapour
- carbon dioxide*
- methane **
- nitrous oxide
- ozone
*Carbon dioxide is produced naturally when people &
animals breath & plants and trees absorb it to live.
** methane can you believe it comes from cattle as
they digest food and from paddy fields where they grow
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Enhanced Greenhouse Effect
Some things we do also produce greenhouse gases. These
keep increasing and the balance of gases is changing
this will effect the whole planet.
Some people say that burning fossil fuels like coal,
oil and natural gas releases carbon dioxide into the
atmosphere. At the same time cutting down tress means
we are reducing the amount of plants that can use the
carbon dioxide and burning trees themelsves adds to
the gases.
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Chlorofluorocarbons (CFC's) |
CFC's have been used in aerosols, like
hairspray cans, plastics, foams and fridges. They are
normally found ins mall amounts in the atmosphere but
can trap large amounts of heat.
The more greenhouse gases there are the more heat is
trapped which makes the earth warmer and warmer.
A lot of scientists belive that if we carry on polluting
the atmosphere it could have a very dangerous effect.
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Effects of Global Warming
With more heat trapped the planet will get warmer.
The weather will change. The summers will be hotter
and the winters milder. Equilibrium is broken. The plants
and animals that are adapated to survive in the temperature
zones they live in will struggle to adapt.
At home in britain we will probably get more rain.
More................ if you live in manchester you are
already used to enough thankyou. More well that wouldnt
be fun at all.
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In other parts of the world the effects will be different,
some places will get drier and others wetter. Some will
even get colder. There could be storms, floods and droughts.
Although scientists agree there is a link between average
surface temperature of the earth and the amount of carbon
dioxide in the atmosphere, it is not clear how climate
around the world will change as carbon dioxide continues
to be added to the atmosphere.
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Some likely changes include a rise in sea level,
longer periods of drought, the melting of polar ice
and glaciers, and an increase in the numbers and strength
of hurricanes and other tropical storms. |
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