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greenhouse effect
noun
noun: greenhouse effect; plural noun: greenhouse effects
1.
the trapping of the sun's warmth in a planet's lower atmosphere, due to
the greater transparency of the atmosphere to visible radiation from the sun than to
infrared radiation emitted from the planet's surface.
Reference:
While other planets in Earth's solar system are either scorching hot or bitterly cold, Earth's
surface has relatively mild and stable temperatures.
Earth enjoys these temperatures because of its atmosphere the thin layer of gases that cloak
and protect the planet. But humans have changed Earth's atmosphere in dramatic ways over the
past two centuries, resulting in global warming.
And to understand global warming, it's first necessary to become familiar with the greenhouse
effect.
Left: Naturally occurring greenhouse gases carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O) normally trap some of the suns heat, keeping the planet from
freezing. Right: Human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels, are increasing greenhouse gas levels, leading to an enhanced greenhouse effect. The result is global warming and
unprecedented rates of climate change.
Credit: Will Elder, National Park Service
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Without this atmospheric equilibrium, Earth would be as cold and lifeless as its moon, or as
blazing hot as Venus.
The moon, which has almost no atmosphere, is about minus 243 degrees F (minus 153 degrees
C) on its dark side. Venus, on the other hand, has a very dense atmosphere that traps solar
radiation; the average temperature on Venus is about 864 degrees F (462 degrees C).
The greenhouse effect, combined with increasing levels of greenhouse gases and the resulting
global warming, is expected to have profound implications, according to the near-universal
consensus of scientists.
If global warming continues unchecked, it will cause significant climate change, a rise in sea
levels, increasing ocean acidification, extreme weather events and other severe natural and
societal impacts, according to NASA, the EPA and other scientific and governmental bodies.