Global Warming and Climate Change 101
Is it getting hot in here?
Since then, it has gotten a lot warmer, and the temperature has increased incredibly fast. If the numbers don't convince you, just ask a farmer or someone who spends a lot of time outdoors. They'll tell you that spring is coming earlier, and the snow and ice at high altitudes are melting faster than ever before. In fact, the warmest years ever measured were 2005, 1998, 2002, 2003 and 2006.
So, earth is getting warmer, but why?
The atmosphere of our planet has a special property known as the "greenhouse effect" that helps maintain a temperature that supports life. The atmosphere lets sunlight pass through and warm the surface of the planet, but it also traps some of the heat that radiates back toward the sun. Without the greenhouse effect, earth would be too cold for life to exist.
One of the most important gasses in the atmosphere is carbon dioxide, or CO2. It's odorless and colorless, but its molecules are key to the heat-trapping effect of the atmosphere. We need just the right amount of it to maintain a nice, steady temperature on earth. Unfortunately, when we burn fuels in our cars, homes, power plants and factories, we release extra CO2 into the atmosphere. And when we cut down trees to make room for houses or cattle, we're removing one of the ways the earth regulates CO2.
