Essay on Is Climate Change Natural or Man-Made?

In the last 100 years, the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere has increased, causing the Earth to warm by an average of 0.6 degrees celsius, largely a result of burning fossil fuels for energy, transportation, and land use changes increased for food production. The basic science is straightforward and climate researchers have shown that gases such as carbon dioxide, methane and others can trap heat in the Earth’s atmosphere, causing a phenomenon known as the greenhouse effect. Human activities such as industry, transport, energy generation and deforestation all produce these greenhouse gases. In the last 20 years, concern has grown that global warming is inevitable and now considered most probably caused by man-made increases in

There are always two sides to every story and every different point of view has a right to be heard. When it comes to the discussion of global warming—a gradual increase in the earth’s surface temperature—there are two very distinct and opposing points of view. The world seems to be split between global warming being caused by humans and it being a natural occurrence; the latter being the viewpoint that I strongly support due to the evidence I will present in detailin this paper. In contrast, I will also discuss, in Part II, the “anti-thesis” or the opposing viewpoint that humans are actually the

The rapidly increasing amount of carbon dioxide may be one of the factors that cause climate change. As Hillman states, “Concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are increasing, and have done so since the Industrial Revolution.” An atmospheric CO2 concentration, research shows that there is a dramatic increase from 280 parts per million (ppm) in 1750 to 373 ppm in 2002, a rise of the third. Furthermore, the linear chart demonstrated the trend of annual global CO2

Throughout the middle of the twentieth century, until now, there has been debate over the existence of climate change. Climate change is the increase of earth’s inclusive temperature of the atmosphere, and the side effects caused by rising temperatures. Climate change is caused by many reasons: burning of fossil fuels, agriculture, landfills, and deforestation. Climate change is mainly caused by greenhouse gases and humans. The effects of climate change are detrimental to earth; the effects have lead to stronger and more intense hurricanes, a rise in temperature, and the melting of glaciers(“Global Climate Change: Effects”).

The human race all around the world wonders if the climate is changing due to human activity or if it is just a natural occurrence. At certain parts of the Earth's surface, the climate can be observed much differently than other locations. As the years go by the average temperature of the Earth increases by little intervals. There are several different reasons why people believe the climate is changing every year. However, the increase of worldwide population and production of heat to the atmosphere is due to the increase of human activities that take place on a daily basis. Human activity is the main cause of the global climate change. The human impact on climate exceeds any known changes due to natural processes. The impact of this human activity is often misunderstood when looking at climate change.

Global climate change has become an undeniable and unavoidable reality. In its latest assessment report, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the international body that provides the most comprehensive reports dealing with the science of climate change, has established that warming of the climate system is ‘unequivocal’. Additionally, it concludes that human activities such as land clearing and burning of fossil fuels have increased the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere to unprecedented levels (IPCC 2013).

Climate change is influenced by the greenhouse effect which is the increase of Carbon dioxide, Methane, Ozone and Nitrogen Oxide. On one hand, the presence of these gases in the atmosphere make the earth habitable with respect to regulating the earth’s temperature. However, an increase in the concentration of these gases results in trapping energy in the atmosphere and this in turn increases earth’s temperature. “Global greenhouse gas emissions have grown since pre-industrial times, with an increase of 70% between

Climate change and its role in the world is a heavily debatable topic that was brought to the spotlight in the 1960s. The main controversies that surround climate change stem from four main arguments. They are “is there global warming? How much global warming is occurring? What causes global warming? And can humanity affect it?” Scientist and analysts study and answer these questions differently forming several different distinct sides to the matter. As a result three arguments and positions have formed about climate change. The three sides consist of those who refuse to believe there is any climate change occurring in the world that the change in the weather and climate are so insignificant that they are of no concern; climate change is real however it is a natural process the Earth undergoes, and climate change is real, it’s a threat, and its man made.

One of the most compelling and difficult environmental problems society is facing today is climate change. People do not realize how much the environment has changed for the worse in the last ten years, until they are told that the last two decades of the 20th century have been the hottest in the last 400 years, according to climate studies (Conserve Energy Future). Today the carbon dioxide levels have reached 396.81 parts per million (ppm). “Carbon dioxide (CO2) has also increased over the last 100 years-- from about 300 ppm to 370 ppm. Interestingly, the majority of these additions have occurred in the last 50 years, when temperature increases have been slowest” (geocraft). There are no known solutions yet to reverse these effects in the

The first section of this paper establishes what exactly naturally occurring climate change is. What are the underlying causes? What happens when climate change occurs? Most importantly how do we know this? The second section of this paper seeks to use our new found knowledge of natural climate change. It builds upon the premise of the first section and the ideas introduced there. Since we know the natural causes of climate change we can draw conclusions relating to the impact and influence that humanity is having on climate change. It is by first establishing naturally occurring climate changes legitimacy and causes and then linking these causes to our now current anthropogenic climate change This second section is also the more controversial, nobody disputes naturally occurring climate change, but as soon as causation is assigned to humanity and particular sections within; it becomes a vigorously debated topic. By first establishing climate change as a naturally occurring

The purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast the arguments made by Berger and Goreham, to determine if an increase in the levels of CO2 in the atmosphere is the primary cause of modern global climate change and if the rise can be attributed to human activities. While in agreement that there is a change in the global climate right now, Berger and Goreham have varying ideas on whether the preponderant cause of this modern climate change is rising carbon dioxide levels, accredited to societies. After further evaluating Berger and Goreham’s arguments, information from scientific journals, will be used in determining which argument holds the most scientific evidence concerning anthropologically created CO2’s influence on global warming.

In the past centuries, the Earth’s surface has undergone drastic climate changes, especially in the current century. The fingerprints that humans have left on Earth’s surface are turning up in a diverse range of records and have been seen anywhere from the ocean to the atmosphere or land. Many contaminative acts are constantly affecting the climate poorly. Between the ones that believe the people are the cause to the shifts in the Earth and the scientists who have only the evidence of nature as the cause, the conflict of interest is who or what has caused it. Could it be a hoax or just a theory? Physical damage and harmful changes in the Earth and its atmosphere are what represent climate shifts, yet climate change itself is caused by humans which have led to harsh and rapid affects worldwide.

Throughout the history of the earth, there has been a continual change in the climate of the earth. According to Nasa, there have been seven cycles of glacial advance and retreat within the last 650,000 years. One of them being the last ice age that abruptly ended about 7,000 years ago which marked the beginning of modern civilization. The changes in climate are normally caused by slight variations in the orbit of the Earth around the Sun which causes there be an increase or decrease in the amount of solar energy the planet absorbs. Today, ninety-seven percent of scientist agree that the current climate-warming that has occurred over the past century is most likely due to the activities of humans. The current climate-warming trend is quite significant because it is proceeding at an unprecedented rate due to the human involvement.

We are fortunate that our modern societies have developed during the last 10,000 years of benignly warm, interglacial climate. But for more than 90 percent of the last two million years, the climate has been colder, and generally much colder, than today. The reality of the climate record is that a sudden natural cooling is far more to be feared, and will do infinitely more social and economic damage, than the late 20th century phase of gentle warming. The single human activity that is most likely to have a large impact on the climate is the burning of "fossil fuels" such as coal, oil and gas. These fuels contain carbon. Burning them makes carbon dioxide gas. Since the early 1800s, when people began burning large amounts of coal and oil, the amount of carbon dioxide in the earth's atmosphere has increased by nearly 30%, and average global temperature appears to have risen between 1° and 2°F.Carbon dioxide gas traps solar heat in the atmosphere, partly in the same way as glass traps solar heat in a sunroom or a greenhouse. For this reason, carbon dioxide is sometimes called a "greenhouse gas." As more carbon dioxide is added to the atmosphere, solar heat has more trouble getting out. The result is that, if everything else stayed unchanged, the average temperature of the atmosphere would increase. As people burn more fossil fuel for energy they add more carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. If this

The issue of global warming should be on the list of our top priorities. Studies show that the average of global temperatures have risen since the Industrial Revolution began. Since the Industrial Revolution, human emissions has quadrupled the frequency of certain heat extremes and many scientists have warned that a failure to bring greenhouse gases under control could eventually lead to a 62-fold increase in extreme heat blasts (Gillis Justin A17). Most of the increase is due to human activities, especially the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation. These activities contribute to a build-up in carbon dioxide and other gases in Earth’s atmosphere. The Earth’s atmosphere is made of gases like nitrogen, carbon dioxide and oxygen. These gases act as a blanket that covers and gives us warmth, but once these gases such as carbon dioxide absorbs heat, but does not release it back into space in which causes the increase in global temperature. This is called the greenhouse effect because it only traps heat but does not release it.