Global Warming Research Paper

Joseph Schiavo
 Global warming is defined as

a long-term rise in the average

temperature of Earth’s atmosphere,

generally attributed to the

greenhouse effect, caused by

increased levels of carbon dioxide

released in the atmosphere. The

heating of Earth’s atmosphere is the greatest threat to life on Earth as we know it. It

may seem like any fatal consequences of global warming will not be seen for a long

time, but the reality is that we have been experiencing them for years now, and the

problems are not going away. Just in the past decade, the top five hottest years globally

all occurred between 2014 and 2018. Global warming is debatably the biggest issue

facing the world in the 20th century, and if not handled properly, could lead to the end of

mass amounts of life on our planet.

Global warming was first discovered in the late 19 th century. When early evidence of

human induced climate change was discovered for the first time in 1896. A scientist

named Svante Arrhenius discovered that cutting atmospheric carbon in half would

produce an ice age and doubling atmospheric carbon would result in a global increase

in surface temperature by 5-6 degrees Celsius. This discovery would later lead to the

idea that an increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide could result in climate change,

originally proposed by Thomas Chrowder Chamberlin. During this time period the idea
that the ice age was caused by a change in the overall amount of atmospheric carbon

was heavily advocated by scientists, most notably Arrhenius. In the 19 th century, the first

and second industrial revolutions took place. During this time, significant new

technology was invented, such as steam engines and the railroad. Coal was a main

source of fuel during the first industrial revolution, being used primarily for steam

engines, steamboats, and furnaces. Throughout the 19th century coal would only have

more and more uses. Coal would be used to make iron, steel, and to generate

electricity. Later on more technologies that would contribute to greenhouse gas

emissions would be made such as electricity and fertilizers. An increasing population

would lead to an increase in demand for coal and other raw materials and goods,

continually causing greenhouse gas emissions to rise. The invention of the world’s first

commercially successful combustion engine in 1876 would also become significant in

the industrializing world. A different fuel source would also soon be used widespread,

known as petroleum. Petroleum is also known as “crude oil” and it is found under

geological formations beneath the Earth’s surface. It was popularized in the early 20 th

century when it proved to be a cheap source of energy that was seemingly abundant

everywhere Oil fields would begin to

open on a massive global scale. The use of petroleum fuels would have a significant
impact on the world and is now known to be one of the leading causes of global

warming and ocean acidification. Petroleum fuels are still used by the entire world,

despite a recent effort to phase out fossil fuels. Other contributions to global warming

would include deforestation which releases the carbon stored in forests, and the

removal of wetlands, which also releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

Overall, the greatest contribution to global warming was the industrialization of the

world. Greenhouse gas emissions continually rose throughout the 20 th century, which

brings us to today, and the world we’ve been left with is in a dangerous situation.

The current world is in a dire situation. Carbon dioxide levels are at an all-time

high, and they are only continuing to rise.

According to data

from NASA from 2018, the past five years have been recorded as the overall warmest

years globally. 2016 was the warmest year globally, with an added 2.25 degrees
Fahrenheit. Not

only have the past five years been the warmest years on record, but the past 20

warmest years occurred in the past 22 years. In 2018, the oceans also had their

warmest year on record. Data shows that oceans worldwide have warmed more than

0.4 degrees since 1969. The warming of the ocean can lead to other environmental

disasters such as rising sea levels, coral bleaching, and tropical cyclones, such as

hurricanes. In 2018, the US experienced over 49 billion dollars in damages due to

hurricanes Michael and Florence. The increase of carbon dioxide emissions has also

led to ocean acidification, which has has increased the acidity of surface ocean levels

by more than 30% since the Industrial Revolution, which is incredibly harmful to sea life.

Global warming has also had a significant influence on the recent wildfires that occurred

in California from 2017-2018. With all this data, it’s difficult to deny that a global

warming trend exists. The evidence has been overwhelming in the past decade, and the

way the arctic is changing currently is solid evidence of that. Currently, the arctic is

more impacted by global warming than any other place in the world, and what happens

in the arctic greatly effects the rest of the world. Currently arctic ice is melting at a rate
faster than it ever has before. This causes multiple problems for the rest of the world.

The arctic is important because it helps regulate the temperature of the rest of the

world. Ice reflects sunlight, while water absorbs it. This means that the more ice melts,

the more heat gets absorbed by the ocean. The rising sea levels caused by melting

glaciers could cause disaster in the near future, flooding coastal cities and completely

submerging small islands. Currently, around 1/4th of ice in the West Antarctic ice sheet

has been classified as unstable. Things look pretty bad right now, and there have been

predictions that in a number of years our climate will be too far gone to effectively

combat the issue. It is currently estimated that greenhouse gas emissions will have to

be reduced 25%-55% lower than they were in 2017 to keep warming under 2 degrees

Celsius.

The whole world is in a dire situation, but there is still hope. We still have time to

change, and we have the technology available to do it. Many individual problems will

have to be addressed with individual solutions. Some of the most helpful solutions are

the simplest. There are things that everyone can do to combat global warming, such as

walking or riding a bike instead of driving every day. Carpooling or riding the bus are

good alternatives as well. Eating less meat can also help reduce greenhouse gas

emissions caused by the meat packing industry. Planting trees and restoring

seagrasses could help reduce significant amounts of carbon dioxide from the

atmosphere. Restoring forests that have been chopped down in Brazil could take

around 1.5 million tons of carbon dioxide out of the air. Combatting global warming

requires us to focus on drawing greenhouse gasses out of the atmosphere, as well as

reducing any further greenhouse gas emissions. Fossil fuel usage is the number one
source of greenhouse gas emissions. The largest coal fired power plant in the US, the

Scherer in Juliet, Georgia, burns 34,000 tons of coal daily, and emits over 25 million

tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere yearly. This makes alternative energy one of

the most important solutions for us to focus on. Other more inventive solutions have

also been proposed, such as spraying aerosols into the atmosphere to shade the sun

and cool the Earth. Another idea is to install walls around glaciers to prevent them

making contact with warm water, slowing their melting. There have been some national

efforts to decrease greenhouse gas emissions and deal with global warming, one of the

most well-known being the Paris Agreement. The Paris Agreement is a treaty that is a

joint effort between countries to decrease greenhouse gas emissions and the average

global temperature rise below 1.5 Celsius. As of May 2019, 185 parties have ratified the

agreement, which make up about 88% of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. It is a

step in the right direction, but it has not been utilized very well. It is important that each

country takes action, as we have many of the solutions right in front of us, but we have

not tried to attempt them on a larger scale. The situation we are in right now is not an

impossible feat. We have decades of knowledge about the problem, we have the money

to act against the problem, and we have the tools to combat it. The only thing we need

to do is act,

The effects of global warming and climate change are undeniable, and the

consequences are approaching at a rate much faster than it seems. Reducing

greenhouse gas emissions and cooling the Earth may be our greatest task yet. It will

take a lot of time, money, and dedication from every country to prevent the worst from
happening. If the world can cooperate, it can be entirely possible. Our survival depends

on it.

Works Cited:

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/07/opinion/climate-change-hope-solutions.html

https://www.climatecentral.org/gallery/graphics/the-10-hottest-global-years-on-

record

https://history.aip.org/climate/timeline.htm

https://climate.nasa.gov/evidence/