Greenhouse Effect Essay

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Green house effect Definition: The phenomenon whereby the earth's atmosphere traps solar radiation, caused by the presence in the atmosphere of gases such as carbon dioxide, water vapor, and methane that allow incoming sunlight to pass through but absorb heat radiated back from the earth's surface. The application of this effect to a planet's atmosphere; carbon dioxide and some other gases in the planet's atmosphere can absorb the infrared radiation emitted by the planet's surface as a result of exposure to solar radiation, thus increasing the mean temperature of the planet. Solar energy, mostly in the form of short-wavelength visible radiation, penetrates the atmosphere and is absorbed by the Earth's surface. The heated surface then radiates some of that energy into the atmosphere in the form of longer-wavelength infrared radiation. Although some of this radiation escapes into space, much of it is absorbed by greenhouse gases in the lower atmosphere, which in turn re-radiate a portion back to the Earth's surface. The atmosphere thus acts in a manner roughly analogous to the glass in a greenhouse, which allows sunlight to penetrate and warm the plants and soil but which traps most of the resulting heat energy inside. The greenhouse effect is essential to life on Earth; however, the intensification of its effect due to increased levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is considered to be the main contributing factor to global warming. It is called as greenhouse effect. | Global warming refers to the increase in the average temperature of the Earth's near-surface air and oceans in recent decades and its projected continuation.The global average air temperature near the Earth's surface has rise 0.74 ± 0.18 °C (1.33 ± 0.32 °F) during the last 100 years. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concludes, "most of the observed
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