What is Global Warming??

Global Warming refers to an increase in the Earth's temperature.

More heat is being accumulated and collected in the atmosphere.

As the word 'global' suggests, this is a phenomenon the whole world is facing.

And 'warming' clearly states, an increase in heat collection.

The causes of Global Warming

Natural causes
-Arctic Tundra and wetlands release a type of gas called Methane. Methane is a Greenhouse Gas and traps heat in the Earth's atmosphere.
-Earth goes through a climate change. This climate change season usually lasts 40 000 years.

Man-introduced causes
-Pollution: Man pollute the Earth with fossil fuels. When these fossil fuels are burnt, they emit a gas called Carbon dioxide. Sadly, carbon dioxide is also a Greenhouse Gas.
-Population: As the population increases, more agriculture will have to be grown. That means more burning of fossil fuels. As more carbon dioxide is emitted, these are causing the increase in Earth's heat.
The problem is made worse as we exhale carbon dioxide. And the increase in population only means an increase in output of carbon dioxide.

The effects of Global Warming

The increase in temperature might lead to serious sunburns or heatstrokes, which can get really severe. There are cases where people have died from these, especially heatstroke. People have also faced heat exhaustion.

According to the weather reports, it's been realized that Singapore's temperature has reached a scorching 35 degrees celcius. This can get very serious.

Crops are dying and water is drying up. This will lead to a shortage of water, or drought. Crops dying can also lead to famine.

The polar bears in the north pole are soon going to be extinct. They are losing their homes as the ice bergs are melting, due to the heat.

This is a graph that shows how population growth affects Global Warming.

The consequences of Global Warming

Global warming has disastrous consequences attached to its phenomenon.
It causes natural disasters to occur more frequently.
Due to the intense heat that's building up, forest fires and wild fires are also taking place more often.
The impacts that natural disasters leave are also very unthinkable.
Examples are: Typhoons, tornadoes, floods, droughts etc.
Below are some pictures of the natural disasters.






























Also, Global Warming could increase smog pollution in certain areas and intensify asthma and some pollen allergies.

The humid situation can also worsen air quality. (In America, the air quality is so bad that it has affected more than 100million Americans today!!)

What is Greenhouse Gases??

Greenhouse Gases are gases in the atmosphere that emit and absorb radiation with thermal infrared range.

They are almost transparent to solar radiation, but emits and absorbs infrared radiation absolute strongly.
These gases include: water vapour, carbon dioxide, methane, ozone, chlorofluorocarbons and nitrus oxide.
Greenhouse Gases, especially water vapour, are important to Earth as they help to really determine the temperature.
WIthout the existence of Greenhouse Gases, Earth will be so cold that it will be totally impossible for human survival.

The distribution of Greenhouse Gases:

The Greenhouse Effect is the heating up of Earth's surface due to the presence of the Greenhouse Gases which absorb and emit infrared radiation.

The Greenhouse Effect is already getting a little stronger. Just some more heat may cause some serious problems for all living organisms- Humans, Plants and Animals.

What can we do to reduce Global Warming in HGSS??

To reduce GW, we can...
-probably drink lesser bottled drinks, so as to reduce the burning of plastics.

-recycle all your items.

-what you don't want, perhaps ask others whether they want it or not.

-carry an environmentally-friendly bag when you buy things rather than accumulating plastic bags at home.

-use papers on both sides; recycle paper.

So you see, little things we students do, can go a long way to saving this Earth and making this planet a better place to live in.