Global warming

Subject: English
Student: Isidora Araya Yañez
Teacher: María José Mancilla
Delivery date: Friday 22, november 2019
Index

 Definition of global warming.

 Causes caused by global warming.
 Global warming effects.
 Images of taking care of our planet
 Conclusion.
 Webgraphy
 Definition of global warming

Global warming is an increase, over time, of the average temperature of the

Earth's atmosphere and the oceans. It is postulated that the temperature has risen
since the end of the 19th century due to human activity, mainly due to the CO2
emissions that increased the greenhouse effect. It is also predicted that
temperatures will continue to rise in the future if greenhouse gas emissions
continue. The temperature rise is caused when greenhouse gases accumulate in
the atmosphere and trap heat.
 Causes caused by global warming
Scientists have spent decades understanding what causes global warming. They
have examined natural cycles and events that influence the climate. However, the
amount and heating pattern that has been measured cannot be explained solely
by these factors. The only way to explain this pattern is to include the effect of
greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted by humans.

To gather all this information, the United Nations formed a group of scientists
called the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The IPCC meets
every several years to review the latest scientific findings and write a report that
summarizes all that is known about global warming. Each report represents a
consensus or agreement among hundreds of leading scientists.

One of the first things scientists learned is that there are several greenhouse gases
responsible for heating and humans emit them in a variety of ways. Most come
from the combustion of fossil fuels from cars, factories and electricity production.
The gas responsible for the majority of heating is carbon dioxide, also known as
CO2. Other gases that contribute to this effect are methane released by landfills
and agricultural activity (especially the digestive systems of grazing animals),
nitrous oxide from fertilizers, gases used for refrigeration and industrial processes
and the loss of forests that otherwise they could store the CO2.

Different greenhouse gases have very different heat retention capabilities. Some
of them may retain even more heat than CO2. A methane molecule produces
more than 20 times the heating of a CO2 molecule. Nitrous oxide is 300 times
more powerful than CO2. Other gases, such as chlorofluorocarbons (which have
been banned in most parts of the world because they also degrade the ozone
layer), have a heat retention potential that is thousands of times greater than CO2.

However, since their concentrations are much lower than CO2, none of these
gases increases both heat in the atmosphere and CO2.

To understand the effects of all these gases together, scientists tend to talk about
all greenhouse gases in terms of the equivalent amount of CO2. Since 1990,
annual emissions have increased by about 6 billion metric tons of "carbon dioxide
equivalent" worldwide, an increase of more than 20%.
 Global warming effects.
The planet is warming up, from the North Pole to the South Pole, and in all
intermediate areas. Globally, mercury has already risen more than 1 degree
Fahrenheit and even more in sensitive polar regions. And the effects of the
temperature increase will not come in the distant future. They are occurring right
now. Symptoms are observed everywhere and some of them are surprising. The
heat is not only melting glaciers and sea ice, it is also changing rainfall patterns
and causing animals to move.

Some impacts of the temperature increase are already taking place.

An iceberg melts in the waters of Antarctica. Climate change has accelerated the
rate of ice loss across the continent.
As the sea level rises, the salty waters of the ocean invade the Florida Everglades.
Native plants and animals must adapt to changing conditions.

The western United States has suffered an extreme drought for years. The dry
and hot climate has caused forest fires to be more intense and destructive.
The fruits of the oil palm are harvested by hand and then transported by truck
to a mill in mainland Malaysia, where they are processed. Ancient forests
around the tropics are being cut down to make room for palm oil plantations.
When these forests are lost, the carbon they retained in their tissues is released
into the atmosphere, and this contributes to greater global warming.

In the plains of Bolivia, a man examines the remains of what was the second
largest lake in the country, Lake Poopó. Drought and management problems
have resulted in the disappearance of the lake.
Climate change is affecting the Arctic flora and fauna. Although scientists do not
know what exactly the cause of death of this polar bear was, experts warn that
many of the bears are having trouble finding food, since the sea ice shelf they
have always had, today is melting .

Lake Urmia, in Iran, is a fundamental bird habitat, and used to be a very

popular tourist destination. It is drying up due to climate change and
management problems.
The Scherer power plant in Juliet, Georgia, is the largest coal-fired power plant
in the U.S. UU. It burns 34,000 tons of coal per day, and every year it releases
more than 25 million tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

The ice melts in a mountain lake. Lakes around the world freeze less and less,
and in a few decades, thousands of lakes may lose their winter ice cap
completely.
 The Amazon loses a large amount of forest mass per year, the equivalent of
almost one million soccer fields, mainly because it is reduced to make way for
agriculture. When forest mass is lost, the carbon that had been retained ends up
in the atmosphere, and therefore, climate change accelerates.

In Glacier National Park, forests are suffering from the effects of early snow
melting, and long, dry summers. Climate change seriously threatens the flora of
the park.
These are other effects that could occur at the end of this century if warming
continues:

 The level of the seas is expected to increase between 18 and 59 centimeters

at the end of this century and if the poles continue to melt, they could
increase by an additional 10 to 20 centimeters.

 Hurricanes and some other storms are likely to get stronger. Species that
depend on each other may lose synchronization. For example, plants
could bloom before the insects that pollinate them are active.


Floods and droughts will become more frequent. The rain in Ethiopia,
where droughts are already common, could fall by 10% over the next 50
years.

 There will be less fresh water available. If the ice sheet of the Quelccaya in
Peru continues to melt as before, it will disappear in 2100 leaving
thousands of people who have it to get drinking water and electricity
without either.

 Some diseases will spread, such as mosquito-borne malaria.

 Ecosystems will change, some species will move further north or be more
successful; others may not move and could be extinguished. Wildlife
research scientist Martyn Obbard has found that since the mid-80s, with
less ice to live and fish, polar bears are considerably thinner. Polar bear
biologist Ian Stirling has discovered a similar pattern in Hudson Bay. He
fears that if sea ice disappears, polar bears will also disappear
Let's take care of our planet
Conclusion

This topic on global warming is very important, since it is a reality and its main
causes are human beings, therefore, we must take the initiative to save our
planet.
Caring for the environment is a commitment of all, so we must implement
being responsible for keeping our planet clean to have a happy future.
Webgraphy

https://www.ecologiaverde.com/calentamiento-global-definicion-1095.html

https://www.nationalgeographic.es/medio-ambiente/causas-del-calentamiento-global

https://www.nationalgeographic.es/medio-ambiente/efectos-del-calentamiento-global