Climate Commission

Causes : Greenhouse Effect

Light from the sun passes through the atmosphere and warms the surface of the Earth. The Earth’s surface then releases this heat into the air.

Greenhouses gases in the air, such as carbon dioxide (CO₂), absorb this heat.  If the greenhouse gases weren’t there the heat would be lost into space. This process is called the greenhouse effect and is the reason the Earth’s temperature is warm and allows life to exist.

You can think about the Earth’s atmosphere like a doona: the more feathers in a doona, the more heat is trapped. The more greenhouse gases in our atmosphere, the more heat is trapped, which makes the Earth hotter.

Human activities have significantly increased the level of CO₂ and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. This increases the greenhouse effect, trapping more heat in the atmosphere and causing global temperature to rise.

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