FREE ESSAY ON GLOBAL WARMING

GLOBAL WARMING

What is global warming, and how is it affecting the Earth and it's inhabitants? Global
Warming is sometimes referred to as the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect is the
absorption of energy radiated from the Earth's surface by carbon dioxide and other gases
in the atmosphere, causing the atmosphere to become warmer. The greenhouse effect is what
is causing the temperature on the Earth to rise, and creating many problems that will
begin to occur in the coming decades. For the last 10,000 years, the Earth's climate has
been extraordinarily beneficial to mankind. Humans have prospered tremendously well under
a benign atmosphere, (Bates 28). 
Today, however, major changes are taking place. People are conducting an inadvertent
global experiment by changing the face of the entire planet. We are destroying the ozone
layer, which allows life to exist on the Earth's surface. All of these activities are
unfavorably altering the composition of the biosphere and the Earth's heat balance. If we
do not slow down our use of fossil fuels and stop destroying, the forests, the world
could become hotter than it has been in the past million years. Average global
temperatures have risen 1 degree Fahrenheit over the last century. If carbon dioxide and
other greenhouse gases continue to spill into the atmosphere, global temperatures could
rise five to 10 degrees by the middle of the next century. 
The warning will be the greatest at the higher latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, with
the largest temperature rises occurring in winter. Most areas will experience summertime
highs well above 100 degrees Fahrenheit. New temperature records will be set each year.
As a possible prelude to global warming, the decade of the 1980's has had the six hottest
years of the century (Erandson 18-22). Atmospheric disturbances brought on by the
additional warming will produce more violent storms and larger death tolls. Some areas,
particularly in the Northern Hemisphere, will dry out and a greater occurrence of
lightning strikes will set massive forest fires. The charring of the Earth by natural and
man-made forest fires will dump additional quantities of carbon dioxide into the
atmosphere. Changes in temperature and rainfall brought on by global warming will in turn
change the composition of the forests. At the present rate of destruction, most of the
rain forests will be gone by the middle of the next century. This will allow man-made
deserts to encroach on once lush areas. (Bassett 1-2). 
Evaporation rates will also increase and circulation patterns will change. Decreased
rainfall in some areas will results in increased rainfall in others. In some regions,
river flow will be reduced or stopped all together completely. Other areas will
experience sudden downpours that create massive floods. The central portions of the
continents, which normally experience occasional droughts, might become permanently dry
wastelands. Vast areas of once productive cropland could lose topsoil and become man-made
deserts. Coastal regions, where half the human population lives, will feel the adverse
effects of rising sea levels as the ice caps melt under rising ocean temperatures. 
If the present melting continues, the sea could rise as much as 6 feet by the middle of
the next century (Bassett 1-2). Large tracks of coastal land would disappear, as would
shallow barrier islands and coral reefs. Low-lying fertile deltas that support millions
of people would vanish. Delicate wetlands, where many species of marine life hatch their
young, would be reclaimed by the sea. Vulnerable coastal cities would have to move
farther inland or build protective walls against the angry sea, where a larger number of
extremely dangerous hurricanes would prowl the ocean stretches. Forests and other
wildlife habitats might not have enough time to adjust to the rapidly changing climate.
The warming will rearrange entire biological communities and cause many species to become
extinct. Weeds and pests could overrun much of the landscape. Since life controls the
climate to some extent, it is uncertain what long-term effects a diminished biosphere
will have on the world as a whole. It is becoming more apparent, however, that as man
continues to squander the Earth's resources, the climate could change in such a way that
it is no longer benevolent to mankind. The greenhouse effect and global warming both
correspond with each other. The green house effect is recalled as incoming solar
radiation that passes through the Earth's atmosphere but prevents much of the outgoing
infrared radiation from escaping into outer space. 
The global warming refers to a long-term rise in the average temperature of the Earth.
How do they correspond with each other? Simply, because without one, the other doesn't
exist. The natural greenhouse effect has kept the Earth's average surface temperature
around 33 degrees Celsius, warmer than it would be if there were no atmosphere. The
natural gases in the greenhouse effect are water vapor, carbon dioxide (CO2), ozone (O3),
as well as other trace gases. Life could not exist if there was no natural greenhouse
effect. The reason for the natural greenhouse effect is so that all the creatures living
on Earth can live and breathe. We as inhabitants of this Earth must do our part in
preserving it, or there won't be much left for our children to live on. Human activities
are causing some greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide to build up in the atmosphere.
Each time we burn gasoline, oil, coal, or even natural gas, more carbon dioxide is added
to the atmosphere (Erandson 34). By cutting down the forest trees, we allow air pollution
to set in. This, therefore, causes many problems in addition to many others. Now that
there are no trees to help filter out pollution, we are allowing more damage to the
atmosphere causing global warming. These certain gases that occur naturally in the
atmosphere tend to trap the sun's heat which is called global warming. By trapping in the
sun's heat, the Earth can be warmed up. Many of the Earth's natural disasters, such as
volcanic activity, and other factors, have caused our planet's (Bates 23) atmosphere to
become either colder or warmer. The global average temperature of the surface has
increased by one degree Fahrenheit over the past century. This indicates that this
warming trend is due to human influences. 
In conclusion, if there were no greenhouse effect then there would be no global warming.
The greenhouse effect causes the global warming to increase as well as humans and other
creatures influence. There are many ways to help prevent and protect both. If people try
to help out, then it would be a longer process to keep the ozone layer healthy longer.
But, nothing will be done until we as humans start helping out. 
Works Cited
Bates, Albert K. Climate in Crisis: The greenhouse Effect and what
We can do. Tennessee: The Book Pub. Co. 1990. 
Erandson, Jon. Greenhouse Effect: Tomorrow's Disaster Today.
Pennsylvania: Tab Books. 1990. 
Bassett, Tony. A Crusade against those who see a greenhouse
effect. The Toledo Blade: December 6, 1995.
Bibliography
Works Cited
Bates, Albert K. Climate in Crisis: The greenhouse Effect and what
We can do. Tennessee: The Book Pub. Co. 1990. 
Erandson, Jon. Greenhouse Effect: Tomorrow's Disaster Today.
Pennsylvania: Tab Books. 1990. 
Bassett, Tony. A Crusade against those who see a greenhouse
effect. The Toledo Blade: December 6, 1995.