Climate Change - Global Warming

Eng.- 111-621

9 December 2015

                                         Global Warming / Climate Change

The specifics, defining the terms global warming and climate change. Global warming or the greenhouse effect is a more specific term that refers to a gradual increase in planet-wide temperatures which is now well documented and accepted by scientists as fact. It is the warming of the lower atmosphere which is a result of the increase of a number of gases that have been classified as greenhouse gases. It is a specific type of climate change. Climate change is a broader term that refers to the long-term change in the average climate of the planet, Changes in regional climate characteristics, including temperature, humidity, rainfall, wind, and severe weather events (differencebetween.net). We should be aware that throughout our history, of both climate change and global warming, this current past 50 years does not stand alone. Scientist have proven that this cycle has happened many times throughout the earths billions of years history.      
          The average person in America first heard about the threat of global warming through Al Gore’s “An inconvenient truth” documentary. The tragic part about that situation was that there were so many people that were going to disagree with him just because he was a member of certain political party. To this day, no matter how far or how thoroughly the issue has been researched, there are still some people out there that choose to ignore it just because of Al Gore bringing that issue to mainstream.
          “A panel convened by the U.S. National Research Council, the nation's premier science policy body, in June 2006 voiced a "high level of confidence" that Earth is the hottest it has been in at least 400 years, and possibly even the last 2,000 years (website solar-center- Stanford). It is believed that over 7 billion tons of carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere yearly by human activity. That is a tremendous amount of CO2. Studies indicate that the average global surface temperature has increased by approximately 0.5-1.0°F (0.3-0.6°C) over the last century. This is the largest increase in surface temperature in the last 1,000 years and scientists are predicting an even greater increase over this century” (solar-center.stanford.edu). Just in the past forty years, surface temperatures have risen by half a degree. The website also states, “Recent estimates by NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) and the National Climatic Data Center show that 2005 and 2010 tied for the planet's warmest year since reliable, widespread instrumental measurements became available in the late 19th century.” (solar-center.stanford.edu). Also, temperature changes vary over the globe. Since 1979, land temperatures have increased about twice as fast as ocean temperatures. This is due to the larger effective heat capacity of the oceans and because the ocean loses more heat by evaporation.
           It is believed that the average global temperatures may increase by 1.4 - 5.8ºC ( 2.5 - 10.4º F) by the end of the 21st century (solar-center.stanford.edu). These changes may seem miniscule at first but, these changes can cause significant changes in climate. For example, the difference between global temperatures during an Ice Age and an ice-free period is only about 5ºC. The website solar-center. Stanford says, “Besides resulting in more hot days, many scientists believe an increase in temperatures may lead to changes in precipitation and weather patterns. Warmer ocean water may result in more intense and frequent tropical storms and hurricanes. Sea levels are also expected to increase by 0.09 - 0.88 m. in the next century, mainly from melting glaciers and expanding seawater.” Many other events will take place if this uprising continues. Answers.com has this to say about what will happen if global warming continues, “Scientist believe it will change the earth systems including ocean circulation and hydrological carbon and nutrient cycles. In other words it will disrupt the natural ecosystems that provide us with water, food, etc., and cause environmental stresses such as declining water quality, ozone depletion, and urban air pollution (take a good look at L.A. and Toronto). Already the U.S. is cutting deals with Canada for water. Yes, the U.S. is running out of water sources. Without water there are no crops! Without forests there are no sources to help keep our air clean and it also depletes some species of animals along with lakes, rivers and oceans” (Answers.com).
           People who accept global warming have a lot more evidence to argue with than non-believers do. Global warming pro individuals argue that there will be an increase of flooding, fires and drought in some countries. They also believe there is also a possibility of some species becoming instinct because of them not being able to survive in warmer environments. An example would be the polar bear which relies entirely on ice. Also penguins and other creatures like seals. Besides animals, people in the arctic areas are being affected also. These are the Inuit people who are dying from too thin ice.
          The general overall health of individuals will be affected also. This is because warmer climates will the change the rate in which diseases, viruses will spread. Due to the ever growing deforestation around the globe. The primary example is in the Amazon rain forest. Our main supply of carbon absorption and oxygen replenishment is being destroyed daily. The natural cleansing process of the air will halt dramatically. Due to excessive air pollution such as smog, car emissions and factories constantly pouring out waste unsafely, diseases will only continue to grow.
           Another example is that the food supply can become depleted. This will happen because the excessive heat will evaporate the water, which the crops essentially need to grow. Too much water from flooding could also affect and kill crops. Rain will be polluted and may also work to kill crops. These examples alone are not devastating, but these examples happening together could be tragic.  
           A brief summary of scientifically proven facts supporting global warming include research on temperature of the oceans increasing, the level of oceans rising, overall climate changing, droughts and flood are more common, loss of crops increasing, wildlife is endangered through loss of habitat, pollution is dramatically increasing, deforestation occurring, deserts are expanding (desertification), artic natives are having to leave their homes and migrate, and an abundance of CO2 increasing in certain domains.
           Individuals who argue against the threat of global warming have a few supporting arguments in comparison to those who support the idea. Here is a quote from answers.com supporting anti-global warming, “"Too much heat", in and of itself, does not kill crops, unless it is accompanied by too little rainfall. But under any reasonable global warming scenario, precipitation will increase. The rain will not be polluted, and if it is, it won't be because of global warming. Too much water will not kill crops. It might make it harder to harvest them, but it won't kill them. But, the point is, whatever localized negative impacts on agriculture that might manifest will be more than outweighed by the positive impacts, like a greatly expanded area that is warm enough to grow crops, and the increases in yield due to an abundance of carbon dioxide. If global warming is really happening and if it continues, it will likely be the best thing to happen to worldwide food production since the invention of man-made fertilizers. Worldwide food production will reach new record levels year after year.” (answers.com). They believe that any damage that will occur will not be enough to affect large areas or a large amount of population. These people believe that even if the worst case scenarios happen, global temperatures and carbon dioxide will still be well below the levels of Mesozoic times. Their arguments have little to none support compared to pro global warming enthusiasts.
          The four main factors of global warming are deforestation, gas emissions from transport and industries, the axis displacement of the earth, and finally the solar variability. These combined with the increasing population and their reckless uses of our resources are increasing global warming.
          One of the largest noted factors of global warming is Greenhouse Gases. It is believed that global warming is caused by the increase of greenhouse gasses, carbon dioxide and methane primarily, in the earth's upper atmosphere directly caused by human burning of fossil fuels, industrial, farming, and deforestation activities. According to the website solar-center. Stanford, “These greenhouse gases reabsorb heat reflected from the Earth's surface, thus trapping the heat in our atmosphere. This natural process is essential for life on Earth because it plays an important role in regulating the Earth's temperature. However, over the last several hundred years, humans have been artificially increasing the concentration of these gases, mainly carbon dioxide and methane in the Earth's atmosphere. These gases build up and prevent additional thermal radiation from leaving the Earth, thereby trapping excess heat.” Due to deforestation the cleansing of gases are becoming much harder which contributes to excessive air pollution. The solution to this problem is drastic reduction of gas emissions through reduction of industrial emissions and reduction in the use of fossil fuels or coming up with alternative ways to substitute the current fossil fuels being used. Also, the public must stop the increasing deforestation so that the earth can naturally cleanse its air.
In the 1990’s, research concerning the earth’s climate history flourished. The world now has knowledge to what type of weather life experienced hundreds of thousands or even millions/billions of years ago.
          The earliest climate recorded is the Cambrian climate. Not too much is known about the climate, just that the temp was not too cold or too hot. Also, there is no evidence of ice at the poles. Note that these earth changes are cycles that precede documented ice ages, that will follow global warming and produce major climate change.
          The next climate is the Ordovician climate. During the early part of this stage, mild climates covered most of the globe. The continents were flooded by the oceans creating warm, broad tropical seaways. During the late Ordovician stage, ice covered Africa and South America. Everywhere else the climate was sunny and warm.
          Next is Silurian stage. Scotese.com has this to say about it, “Coral reefs thrived in the clear sunny skies of the southern Arid belt which stretched across North America and northern Europe. Lingering glacial conditions prevailed near the South Pole.” (scotese). Next is the Devonian stage. During the earlier part is was dry and warm. At the end of this phase, it was much colder.
          Next stage is Carboniferous. Earlier part of this was mild climates, but at the end of it became extremely cold. Next is Permian stage. In the beginning of this era the climate was extremely cold and at the end of it climate became extremely hot. The next two stages Triassic and Jurassic were extremely hot and temperatures began to cool in the late Jurassic era. Next is Cretaceous. The beginning part of this stage was cold, but the middle and late part was hot.
           The next stage is Paleocene. Scotese.com had this to say about this stage, “The climate during the Paleocene was much warmer than today. Palm trees grew in Greenland and Patagonia. The Mangrove swamps of southern Australia were located at 65 degrees south latitude.” (Scotese). From that stage till now, the climates have become much cooler.
I believe that the last major climate cycle was very cold and that now the climate is starting to get warmer. In the earth’s history, there has been a couple times where it will become extremely cold, and then stay hot for a long time and then go back to the being cold. Scotese.com gives a great chart on the history of our climates.
          Whether there is a climate change coming or not, I believe that our actions as current residents on this earth are reckless. We live as if it doesn’t matter what kind of world we leave for the next generations. It’s a sad reality. Selfishness of people is at an all-time high, it’s all about me, me, and more me. The only way we can reduce this upcoming disaster is if we all work together and make sacrifices. This can be such as using alternative ways of transport, lobbying against deforestation and even contributing in research that will help find alternative ways and replace fossil fuels. If we can’t unite as a whole and work together to improve our planet and way of life, the up-coming generations will be forced to endure harsher measures to correct what will follow.