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What is Global Warming and Climate Change
Global Warming
BIOL 002
Dr. Safa Baydoun
Faculty of Sciences
Beirut Campus
?What is Global Warming and Climate Change
• Global warming (ALSO CALLED GREENHOUSE EFFECT) and
climate change refer to an increase in average global
temperatures.
• Natural events and human activities are believed to be
contributing to an increase in average global temperatures.
• This is caused primarily by increases in greenhouse gases
(GHG) such as Carbon Dioxide (CO2).
• A warming planet leads to a change in climate which can
affect weather in various ways and can impact life on our
planet.
GHGs trap the heat of sunlight that reflects back up into the atmosphere. In
.this way, they act like the glass walls of a greenhouse
:The main GHG
• Carbon dioxide,
• Methane,
• Nitrous oxide
• Halogenated compounds such as:
• Chloro-florocarbons (CFC),
• Perfluorocarbons (PFCs),
• Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)
GHG form a layer of gases that acts like the
roof of the Greenhouse which is why it is
called the Greenhouse Effect
• GHG allow the sun’s heat to pass through the
atmosphere warming the planet keeping in
enough heat to maintain life.
• There is augmenting evidence that emissions of
greenhouse gases (GHGs – mainly carbon dioxide
(CO2)) are causing air temperature increases
resulting in climate change.
• Climate change exposes people, societies,
economic sectors and ecosystems to risk.
But !!!!!
GHG effect of the Earth’s atmosphere is a natural
phenomenon
- Without GHGs, the Earth’s temperature would be much
lower, whereby natural atmospheric concentrations of water
vapour and carbon dioxide (CO2) trap infrared radiation.
- Greenhouse effect keeps the Earth warm enough to sustain
life. Scientists believe that without the greenhouse effect, the
average temperature of the Earth would drop from 14˚C to as
low as –18˚C.
Anthropogenic GHG emissions
Anthropogenic GHG emissions have increased
since the pre-industrial era driven largely by
economic and population growth. From 2000
to 2010 (and possibly till now) emissions were
the highest in history.
Historical emissions have driven atmospheric
concentrations of carbon dioxide, methane and
nitrous oxide to levels that are unprecedented
in at least the last 800,000 years, leading to an
uptake of energy by the climate system.
Between ICE Age Cyclic and Present Co2
Emissions and Climate Change
• The Climate has always varied in the
past. This does not mean that
today’s warming is natural. Recent
warming has been shown to be due
to human industrialization
processes.
Ice Age Cycle
• Perhaps the most dramatic example of natural
climate variability over a long time periods is
the Ice Age Cycle.
• The cyclical pattern of temperature variations
constitutes the ice age/interglacial cycles.
• This was caused by slight recurring variations in
Earth’s orbit (eccentricity and tilt or obliquity)
that alter the amount and seasonal distribution
of solar energy Earth (Milankovitch cycles).
• The relatively small changes in solar
energy are reinforced over thousands of
years by gradual changes in Earth’s ice
cover (the cryosphere) and ecosystem,
leading to large changes in global
temperatures.
• The average global temperature change
during an ice age cycle, which occur over
about 100,000 years, is on the order of
1°C ± 5°C.
Years of Temperature and Carbon Dioxide Records 800,000
• Ice core records from Antarctica,
show, the temperature near the
South Pole has varied by as much
as 11°C during the past 800,000
years.
•During these cycles, changes in carbon
dioxide concentrations (in red) track closely
with changes in temperature (in blue), with
CO2 lagging behind temperature changes.
•Because it takes a while for snow to
compress into ice, ice core data are not yet
available much beyond the 18th century at
most locations. However, atmospheric
carbon dioxide levels, are higher today than
at any time during the past 800,000 years.
• The data show that in past ice age cycles,
changes in temperature have led changes
in CO2.
• This is because the changes in
temperature induced by changes in
Earth’s orbit around the Sun lead to
gradual changes in the biosphere and the
carbon cycle, and thus CO2, reinforcing
the initial temperature trend.
Atmospheric levels of CO2 in ice cores and more
.recent direct measurements
• In contrast, the relatively rapid release of
CO2 and other greenhouse gases since the
start of the Industrial Revolution from the
burning of fossil fuel has, in essence,
reversed the pattern: the additional CO2 is
acting as a climate forcing, with
temperatures increasing afterward.
• There is also direct evidence from past
climates that large releases of carbon
dioxide have caused global warming.
