In my search to understand how we managed to get involved in a deadly shadow fight against a foe more dangerous than we imagined, I had to re-aquaint myself with the concept of greenhouse gases.
Here goes: First, sunlight warms the earth; the earth then radiates energy back up into the atmosphere, which warms the atmosphere. Heat is absorbed by certain gases (called greenhouse gases, mainly because they trap the heat in the lower atmosphere) and re-radiates some of this heat back down to earth.
There are basically four types of greenhouse gases: Water vapor (the most abundant); carbon dioxide; methane; and ozone.
The greenhouse effect helps to regulate the temperature of the earth. It is a naturally occuring process that is essential for life on earth.
However, the increase in the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, mainly carbon dioxide, is trapping the heat the earth releases, causing the global surface to basically sweat with a rising temperature. The earth sweats, it gets sick, everything in the earth gets sick. Oh, I get the picture?
The International Energy Agency (IEA) says China is the world's second largest producer of carbon dioxide, after the United States.The IEA finding confirms the growing role of China and other developing countries in the worsening greenhouse gas problem.
The biggest polluter by far is the United States, with 23% of the total, followed by China at 13% , Russia with 6%, Japan at 5%, and India at 4%.
Since no one is immune from this sickness, we may as well start doing something to save the earth from it's greatest enemy - it's human inhabitants.
