The Future

Carbon Dioxide emissions continue to increase in the U.S. while methane and nitrous oxide emissions are decreasing. The declines in methane emissions are due to a variety of technological, policy, and agricultural changes, such as increased capture of methane from landfills for energy, reduced emissions from natural gas systems, and declining cattle populations. (EPA)

Computer climate models show that greenhouse gas emissions, specifically those from Carbon Dioxide, will continue to increase. The models are all different based on different data and opinions, but they all agree that without extreme changes made, global warming will worsen. (EIA, UMICH) Even if humans stopped burning fossil fuels, it would take years for global warming to slow down based on atmospheric inertia.

As an update, I found that if we all breathed half as much as we do, we could reduce CO2 emissions by 4%! How to do this: hold your breath, exercise less, sleep more, and meditate!

Other Greenhouse Gases

The next most prominent gas is methane. Methane comes from landfills, coal mines, oil and gas operations, and agriculture. It is produced in the production and transport of fossil fuels. It represents 9% of total greenhouse gas emissions. (EIA) Since 1750, the concentration of methane has doubled. (UMICH)

Nitrous oxide is the next most prominent, it has a sweet odor and is used as an anesthetic. Nitrous oxide is emitted from burning fossil fuels and through the use of fertilizers and industrial processes. (EIA) It represents 5% of total greenhouse gas emissions.

Human made gases, like those used in aerosols, are released as byproducts of industrial processes and through leakage. These gases are called flourocarbons. They represent 2% of total greenhouse gas emissions. They break down molecules in the Earth's atmosphere. (UMICH)

Carbon Dioxide

Carbon Dioxide is the most prominent greenhouse gas in Earth’s atmosphere. Carbon Dioxide is recycled through the atmosphere by the processes of photosynthesis and respiration. (UMICH)

Concentrations of Carbon Dioxide are naturally regulated by various processes of the carbon cycle. These natural processes can absorb almost half of the net 6.1 billion metric tons that are emitted each year, but the remaining 3.2 billion metric tons are added to the atmosphere annually. (EIA)

Humans release Carbon Dioxide by exhaling, burning fossil fuels, and deforesting the planet. (UMICH) About three-fourths of human-made carbon dioxide emissions are from burning fossil fuels. Fossil fuels include natural gas, oil, and coal.

The most common ways of burning fossil fuels are using gasoline for transportation, the generation of electricity in power plants, the high energy using factories, and home heating systems. (EIA)

The Greenhouse Effect

The most common greenhouse gases are carbon dioxide, water vapor, ozone, nitrous oxide, and methane. To understand what a greenhouse gas is one must understand the concept of the “greenhouse effect.” The greenhouse effect is the rise in temperature of the Earth because these gases are in the atmosphere. When sunlight enters the Earth’s atmosphere, it passes through the layers of gases because it has such a short wavelength. The Earth absorbs the solar energy and releases it back into the atmosphere as infared radiation. A small portion of the radiation is released into space, but because of the long wavelength, the majority cannot escape. The remaining infared radiation is absorbed by gases in the atmosphere that re-emit the energy back toward the Earth’s surface in the form of heat. This effect is natural and necessary to keep the Earth warm enough to sustain life, but with increasing greenhouse gas emissions, the Earth is heating up drastically.

Annotated Sources

http://www.agu.org/sci_soc/policy/climate_change_position.html

This website explains what human activities have been affected greenhouse gas emissions and how they are affected.

http://www.climatetechnology.gov/stratplan/final/CCTP-StratPlan-Ch08-Sep-2006.pdf

This website goes into depth about how greenhouse gas emissions are monitored, including the technology used.

http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/1605/ggccebro/chapter1.html

This website explains what greenhouse gases are and tells what the sources of greenhouse gases are. It also predicts what will happen in the future if trends continue.

http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/index.html

This website explains the source of each greenhouse gas. It also explains how greenhouse gas emissions are monitored.

http://mysite.verizon.net/mhieb/WVFossils/greenhouse_data.html

This website gives specific facts and data about greenhouse gas emissions, including concentrations, human contribution, and the effects of water vapor.

http://www.umich.edu/~gs265/society/greenhouse.htm

This website explains the greenhouse effect, specific greenhouse gases, how global warming is affecting the Earth (socially and environmentally), and how energy is produced.

Intoduction

This blog is a discussion of greenhouse gases. It will discuss what greenhouse gases are, how they are produced, how human activity affects them, and how they are monitored.