The Word “Greenhouse Gas” Is How Old?

Greenhouse gases (GHGs) are gases in the atmosphere that raise the surface temperature of planets like Earth. They absorb wavelengths of radiation emitted by a planet, resulting in the greenhouse effect. The Earth is warmed by sunlight, causing its surface to heat up and emit more heat. This warming occurs when greenhouse gases accumulate in the Earth’s atmosphere, such as water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, and other gases.

The greenhouse effect occurs when greenhouse gases in a planet’s atmosphere insulate the planet from losing heat to space, raising its surface temperature. Surface heating can occur from internal heat sources. Global greenhouse gas emissions have increased rapidly over the last half-century, with emissions increasing 70% between 1970 and 2004. Emissions of carbon dioxide, the most important greenhouse gas, rose by about 80 percent during that time.

The term “greenhouse effect” was first proposed by Swedish physicist and physical chemist Svante Arrhenius in 1896, who published the first plausible climate model explaining how gases trap heat in the Earth’s atmosphere. The term has been used fewer times since 1998 due to media influences.

The greenhouse effect has been known since Joseph Fourier in 1827, with the first estimate of the impact of a doubling of CO2 being made in 1856. In recent years, it has become apparent that an American woman, Eunice Foote, made a similar discovery in 1856, three years before Tyndall.

In summary, greenhouse gases are gases that increase the surface temperature of planets like Earth due to their ability to absorb infrared radiation. The greenhouse effect has been a significant driver of observed climate change since the mid-20th century.

How long has greenhouse gases been an issue?

Human activities have been the primary cause of global warming since the start of the 20th century, with natural factors like the sun’s output, volcanic activity, Earth’s orbit, and the carbon cycle also affecting Earth’s radiative balance. Since the late 1700s, the net global effect of human activities has been an increase in greenhouse gas concentrations, affecting various aspects of climate, including surface air and ocean temperatures, precipitation, and sea levels.

Human health, agriculture, water resources, forests, wildlife, and coastal areas are all vulnerable to climate change. Many greenhouse gases are extremely long-lived, remaining airborne for tens to hundreds of years after release, while others, like tropospheric ozone, have a relatively short lifetime. Other related factors, such as radiatively important substances and albedo, can also alter the Earth’s climate.

When did global warming start becoming a problem?

In 1988, global warming and the depletion of the ozone layer became increasingly prominent in the international public debate and political agenda. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) organized an internal seminar to identify environmental sectors sensitive to climate change, and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was established to examine greenhouse warming and global climate change.

The General Assembly identified climate change as a specific and urgent issue, asking the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and UNEP to initiate a comprehensive review and make recommendations on climate change.

In 1989, the first significant global efforts were taken, with the Maldives transmitting the text of the Malé Declaration on Global Warming and Sea Level Rise to the UN Secretary-General, the Helsinki Declaration on the Protection of the Ozone Layer being adopted, and the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer entering into force. The second World Climate Conference, held from 29 October to 7 November 1990, further advanced efforts to raise awareness of the effects of climate changes.

The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development convened in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, which set a new framework for seeking international agreements to protect the integrity of the global environment. Chapter 9 of Agenda 21 dealt with the protection of the atmosphere, establishing the link between science, sustainable development, energy development and consumption, transportation, industrial development, stratospheric ozone depletion, and transboundary atmospheric pollution.

The most significant event during the Conference was the opening for signature of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which stabilized atmospheric concentrations of “greenhouse gases” to prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system. The Kyoto Protocol, adopted in Japan in December 1997, aimed to reduce industrialized countries’ emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases by at least 5% below 1990 levels in the commitment period of 2008 to 2012.

How old is the term global warming?

Climate change refers to the ongoing increase in global average temperatures caused by human activities such as burning fossil fuels since the Industrial Revolution. This has led to the absorption of heat from the Earth’s surface, warming the lower atmosphere. Carbon dioxide, the primary greenhouse gas driving global warming, has grown by about 50 and has been at levels unseen for millions of years.

Climate change has a significant impact on the environment, with deserts expanding, heat waves and wildfires becoming more common. Amplified warming in the Arctic has contributed to thawing permafrost, glacier retreat, and sea ice decline. Higher temperatures are also causing more intense storms, droughts, and other weather extremes. Rapid environmental change in mountains, coral reefs, and the Arctic is forcing many species to relocate or become extinct.

Efforts to minimize future warming may be successful, but some effects will continue for centuries, such as ocean heating, ocean acidification, and sea level rise.

Why is the term greenhouse gas technically inaccurate?

The greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, such as carbon dioxide and water vapor, work by preventing convective cooling by reducing airflow. These gases, which are made up of three or more atoms, vibrate when they absorb heat, releasing radiation that is likely absorbed by another greenhouse gas molecule. This process keeps heat near the Earth’s surface, similar to the panes of glass in a greenhouse. The major greenhouse gases are carbon dioxide, water vapor, methane, and nitrous oxide, which work together to maintain the Earth’s temperature.

When was the term greenhouse gas first used?

John Tyndall was the first to measure the infrared absorption and emission of gases and vapors, showing that the effect was mainly due to water vapor, with small percentages of hydrocarbons and carbon dioxide having a significant effect. Svante Arrhenius, in 1896, made the first quantitative prediction of global warming due to a hypothetical doubling of atmospheric carbon dioxide. The term “greenhouse” was first applied to this phenomenon by Nils Gustaf Ekholm in 1901.

Arrhenius used Langley’s observations of increased infrared absorption to estimate an atmospheric cooling effect from a future decrease in carbon dioxide. He realized that the cooler atmosphere would hold less water vapor, another greenhouse gas, and calculated the additional cooling effect. He also realized that the cooling would increase snow and ice cover at high latitudes, making the planet reflect more sunlight and further cool down.

Matter emits thermal radiation at a rate directly proportional to the fourth power of its temperature. Without this absorption, Earth’s surface would have an average temperature of -18°C (-0. 4°F), but due to some absorption, Earth’s average surface temperature is around 15°C (59°F), resulting in a temperature change of 33°C (59°F).

Why do scientists call it greenhouse gases?

Greenhouse gases absorb infrared radiation from the Sun, causing heat to be circulated in the atmosphere and eventually lost to space. They also increase the rate at which the atmosphere can absorb short-wave radiation from the Sun, but this has a weaker effect on global temperatures. The CO2 released from fossil fuel burning accumulates as an insulating blanket around Earth, trapping more Sun’s heat in the atmosphere. Human anthropogenic actions contribute to the enhanced greenhouse effect. The contribution of a greenhouse gas depends on its heat absorption, re-radiation, and presence in the atmosphere.

Is greenhouse gas a misnomer?

The greenhouse effect is a process that causes Earth’s surface to become warmer than it would have without an atmosphere. However, global warming refers to an expected increase in the magnitude of this effect, causing the Earth’s surface to become hotter. The Earth’s surface receives nearly twice as much energy from the atmosphere as from the Sun, but the Sun does not cover nearly as much of the sky as the atmosphere.

The smaller portion of radiation emitted by each portion of the atmosphere, now coming from the whole sky, does not add up to as much energy. It would take about 90, 000 Suns to paper over the entire sky.

When was CO2 considered a greenhouse gas?

In the 19th century, scientists discovered that atmospheric gases cause a “greenhouse effect” that affects the planet’s temperature. They were interested in the possibility that a lower level of carbon dioxide gas might explain the ice ages of the distant past. Svante Arrhenius calculated that emissions from human industry might bring global warming, but other scientists dismissed his idea. G. S. Callendar argued that carbon dioxide levels were climbing and raising global temperature, but most scientists found his arguments implausible.

In the 1950s, a few researchers discovered that global warming was possible. In the early 1960s, C. D. Keeling measured the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and found that it was rising rapidly. Researchers began to understand how the level of carbon dioxide had changed in the past and how it was influenced by chemical and biological forces. They found that the gas plays a crucial role in climate change, and its rising level could gravely affect our future.

When did scientists start warning about climate change?

Scientists began to worry about climate change in the late 1950s, with the scientific community uniting in the 1980s to take action. However, the concern for climate change dates back thousands of years, with debates about the impact of human activities on the environment dating back to ancient Greece. As early as 1200 B. C. to A. D. 323, people debated whether draining swamps or cutting down forests might bring more or less rainfall to the region. The scientific community’s interest in how our activities affect the climate has only escalated since then, but the melting iceberg is just the tip of the melting iceberg.

Who is the father of greenhouse gases?

The scientific discovery of climate change began in the early 19th century when ice ages and other natural changes in paleoclimate were first suspected. The natural greenhouse effect was first identified in 1824 by Joseph Fourier, and further strengthened by Claude Pouillet in 1827 and 1838. Eunice Newton Foote demonstrated that the sun’s warming effect is greater for air with water vapor than for dry air, and even greater with carbon dioxide.

John Tyndall measured the infrared absorption and emission of various gases and vapors, showing that the effect was due to a small proportion of the atmosphere, largely due to water vapor. Svante Arrhenius made the first quantitative prediction of global warming due to a hypothetical doubling of atmospheric carbon dioxide in 1896.

In the 1960s, evidence for the warming effect of carbon dioxide gas became increasingly convincing, and scientists discovered that human activities that generated atmospheric aerosols could have cooling effects, later referred to as global dimming. Other theories for the causes of global warming were also proposed, involving forces from volcanism and solar variation. The scientific understanding of global warming greatly increased during the 1970s.

When did we start calling global warming climate change?

Climate change, a term coined by Hulme in the 2000s, is a more accurate description of the world’s weather systems than the term “greenhouse effect”. It alters the weather system in ways not limited to temperatures, such as making winters colder, intensifying storms, heating the ocean, leading to flooding and wildfires, and killing animals, plants, and humans. The term has gained popularity in recent years, making it a more neutral term for understanding the effects of climate change.