Investigating the Cause of Global Warming Essay

All three-major global surface temperature reconstructions show that Earth has warmed since 1880. Most of the warming occurred in the past 35 years, with 15 of the 16 warmest years on record occurring since 2001.

The increased temperatures are part of a natural cycle that the earth goes through. These cycles include both warming and cooling periods. The most recent warming period was approximately 1000 years ago known as the “Medieval Climate Optimum” (Robinson, Robinson, & Soon, 2008). During the Medieval Climate Optimum the average temperature was much warmer than what is now. 1000 years ago they didn’t burn hydrocarbons like we do now, and the temperatures then were warmer than they are now. 200 - 500 years ago the earth went through a cooling period known as a “Little Ice Age” (Robinson, Robinson, & Soon, 2008). We are currently recovering from that cooling period. During the Little Ice Age temperatures dropped well below average. However, a study of more recent history temperatures can also show that the climates are cyclic and not the result of human activities.

There are multiple reasons why trying to determine whether average temperatures have increased during a 100 years period for a certain area. Weather stations move constantly and are never in the same positions all the time. Techniques and methods for measuring temperatures have changed and are continually changing. Also, depending on the location and population of the area, temperatures will rise when population rises.

Scientists have documented the rise in average temperatures worldwide since the late 1800s. Earth 's average temperature has risen by 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit (0.8 degrees Celsius) over the past century, per

In the past 130 years, the average temperature increased by 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit, with more than half of its increased in the past 35 years.( Science for a healthy planet and safe world). In 2001 to 2010 it was the warmest decade since 1880. However this was the year when enough temperature records became able to calculate a global average. However it shows that average global temperature are likely to increase by 3.1 to 7.2 degrees Fahrenheit by end of the century depending on how much carbon is released.( Climate hot map). In the past 40 years it has been the warmer than average. The hottest year recorded. The other 12 hottest years recorded have all occurred since1998. ( Science for a healthy planet and safe world).

Temperatures in the atmosphere have been continuing to rise, above the average temperature of 42.6 degrees Fahrenheit. The global average temperature is stable over long periods of time. The effects of the global climate shift lead to observable damage. For instance, more powerful weather patterns and sea ice has been breaking up. By the end of the century, temperatures could rise as much as one degree Fahrenheit. This increase is unusual in the Earth’s climate record. Small variations in temperature correspond to extreme changes in the environment. For example, at the end of the last ice age, when the Northeast United States was covered by more than 3,000 feet of ice, average temperatures were only 5 to 9 degrees colder than today. (NASA) What are the factors that are contributing to this change? Changes in climate are attributed to human factors and have imputed the shift in global temperature. Climate change is a continued threat to society.

The current global change has made the rates rise higher than historical rates, this is because of humans. In the past the global temperatures has gone up and down over millions of years.

Over the past hundred thousand years the temperature has changed dramatically but it was not until the 1900’s that it started to rapidly increase and constantly change, but over the past 1,000 the temperature has increased at a rapid rate due to human effects on the rate at which carbon

Climatologist, author, researcher, former NASA U.S. Science Team leader, Dr. Roy Spencer, has done extensive research on global warming, he has conducted thousands of tests and has concluded that man has not been the main source of global warming, since the industrial evolution began. In fact, he states that global temperatures are a

So, is the temperature really rising? This simple answer to this question is “Yes.” According to Watson, we now have strong evidences that the climate is changing and that human activities were the primary cause of the changes during the 20th century (24). He asserts that the temperature increase in the 20th century was greater than that for any other century during the last 1000 years and the temperatures now are warmer than at any time during this period (26). Johns acclaim that the rise in CO2 levels from 280 parts per million around 1700s to 380 p.m. Today is the major factor

over the last century and the years 2005 and 2010 are tied for the warmest years on

Today we are debating the important topic of global warming. As the affirmative team, we strongly believe that global warming is caused by the actions of humans. But this is not just a belief, this is a fact. Global warming, by definition, is a gradual increase in the overall temperature of the earth 's atmosphere generally attributed to the greenhouse effect caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide, CFCs, and other pollutants. The greenhouse effect is the trapping of the sun 's warmth in a planet 's lower atmosphere due to the greater transparency of the atmosphere to visible radiation from the sun than to infrared radiation emitted from the planet 's surface. In simpler terms, this means that the pollution

As Robert Frost once said, “ Some say the world will end in fire, some say in ice. From what I’ve tasted of desire I hold with those who favor fire.” This excerpt can relate to the idea of global warming. Global warming can be defined as an increase in the earth's average atmospheric temperature that causes corresponding changes in climate and that may result from the greenhouse effect. During the past 10,000 years the earth has been in an ever-growing cycle that has significantly changed the climate. These changes are becoming more prevalent in our world today in the past 150 years. Scientists have been analyzing the causes and effects of the greenhouse effect and many other issues that global warming has presented. As John Houghton

This shifts the earth in and out of ice ages in 100,000 year-intervals. 10,000-20,000 years of that period consists of a warmer climates. As far as where we are in this cycle, we are actually on the temperature decline. As we recall history, carbon dioxide follows closely behind with the general heating pattern. The recent difference, is that carbon dioxide is now leading the heating trend. Data shows that the current pattern is deviating from the natural cycles. Decomposition of dead organisms and organic materials, as well as oceans and erupting volcanoes, release the gas CO2, which also causes natural heating.

Global warming first mentioned by ‘Svante August Arrhenius in 1896’, but in ‘1753, Joseph Black discovered carbon dioxide’ and in ‘1827, Jean-Batiste Fourier suggested that atmospheric effect kept the earth warmer than it would otherwise be’, (Direct.gov. n.d. A history of climate change). Since this time, reports, and study have be done with graphs to show the impact of global warming and what could happen to our planet. In 1979, the first conference was held this was called ‘International climate science’ it called on governments to ‘foresee and prevent man-made changes in climate’. 1988 the ‘IPCC’ was setup by the ‘United Nations’ to look at reports and the findings, they advised measures to stop ‘greenhouse gases to prevent global