The greenhouse effect and global warming are just two of the several climate-changing problems we face today.
The process by which heat is retained near the surface of the Earth due to "greenhouse gases" is known as the greenhouse effect. Global warming is caused by the greenhouse effect.
Regarding the Greenhouse effect, what do you mean?
A greenhouse is a building used to cultivate plants that need a regulated environment. The majority of the translucent material on its walls and roof is glass.
What is the incidence solar radiation in a greenhouse?
visible light as well as adjacent ultraviolet and infrared wavelengths.
absorbs by the ground, floor, and contents after passing through the glass walls and ceiling. Heat radiation, or longer-wavelength infrared radiation, is released by the materials as they warm up.
Why is radiative transfer ineffective for allowing infrared energy to escape?
because infrared radiation cannot be transmitted through glass or other wall materials used in greenhouses.
The greenhouse's interior temperature rises because convection cannot carry heat out of the building because it is not open to the atmosphere. We refer to this as the "greenhouse effect."
Relevance of the Natural Greenhouse Effect
For millions of years, the world has experienced the natural phenomenon known as the greenhouse effect.
How did the natural greenhouse effect come about?
Life on Earth is made possible by the natural greenhouse effect that is brought about by the existence of water vapor and tiny water particles in the atmosphere. When combined, these account for almost 95% of global warming.
The natural greenhouse effect keeps average world temperatures at roughly 15°C.
Without this event, the average global temperature might have dropped to -17°C, a temperature at which life would not have evolved.
GHGs, or greenhouse gases
The greenhouse effect is caused by a number of gasses. They are mentioned in the list below.
Which gases cause the greenhouse effect to occur?
It is caused by the ability of atmospheric gases to trap outgoing infrared light from the earth's surface, including carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide (N2O), water vapor, and chlorofluorocarbons.
As a result, the heating impact is referred to as the "greenhouse effect" and these gases as "greenhouse gases."
Are all nitrogen oxides considered greenhouse gases? No
Nitrogen Oxides with the Standard Formula While nitrogen dioxide (N2O) is a greenhouse gas, other gases such as NOx (nitrogen oxide), NO2, and so on are global cooling gases.
The temperature might increase by 5°C by the turn of the century if greenhouse gas emissions are not controlled.
Scientists predict that this rise in temperature will have a negative impact on the ecosystem and lead to atypical climatic events (such as an increase in El Nino frequency), which would hasten the melting of ice caps in the Himalayas and the polar regions.
The frozen water component of the Earth's water system is known as the cryosphere. The cryosphere includes high mountain range snow crowns and polar regions.
What effect does this have?
This would result in a long-term rise in sea level, which will submerge many coastal areas and destroy coastal habitats, including the most important ecosystems for providing ecological services, including wetlands and marshes.
Gas V/S Sources and Causes
Carbon dioxide (CO2): Deforestation and the burning of fossil fuels
Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs): industrial and commercial applications, refrigeration, solvents, insulation foams, and aero propellants
Methane (CH4): is produced by burning fossil fuels, wood, termites, growing paddies, wetlands, landfills, animal excrement, and fertilizer companies.
Nitrogen oxides (N2O): are produced when wood, crop residue, fertilizers, and fossil fuels are burned.
Carbon monoxide (CO):Burning fossil fuels, burning e-waste, and smelting iron ore all produce .
CARBON DIOXIDE
Because carbon dioxide is opaque to radiation leaving the ground but transparent to radiation entering the atmosphere, it plays a crucial role in meteorology.
After being partially absorbed by the earth's surface, some of the radiation is reflected back toward it. It is mostly responsible for the greenhouse effect.
Because it is denser than air, its concentration is higher near the surface of the planet.
Ozone
Another significant greenhouse gas is ozone. However, on the surface, it is quite little.
The majority of it is restricted to the stratosphere, where it absorbs damaging UV light.
When sunlight is present, pollutants like NO2 combine with volatile organic molecules at ground level to create tropospheric ozone.
VAPOUR OF WATER
Why is water vapor regarded as a special kind of greenhouse gas?
due to the fact that it partially absorbs both incoming and outgoing solar light.
In the warm, humid tropics, it might make up 4% of the air by volume, but in the polar regions and dry, cold desert, it might make up less than 1% of the air.
Another erratic gas in the atmosphere that diminishes with altitude is water vapor.
As one moves from the equator to the poles, water vapor similarly drops.
METHANE
After carbon dioxide, methane is the most significant greenhouse gas.
It is created when biological materials and animal manure break down.
The production of gobar gas from animal waste and organic materials (methane) can limit the discharge of this gas.
Nitrous Oxide (N2O)
Nitrous oxide, or N2O, is a type of greenhouse gas.
Emissions of nitrogen oxide and nitrogen dioxide, or NO and NO2, or nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide, counteract the effects of greenhouse gases by generating (OH) radicals that break down methane molecules.
CARBON MONOXIDE
Being less dense than air, carbon monoxide is a short-lived greenhouse gas.
By enhancing methane and tropospheric ozone concentrations through chemical reactions with other atmospheric constituents (such as the hydroxyl radical, OH), it has an indirect radiative forcing effect on those components that would otherwise be destroyed.
It eventually oxidizes to carbon dioxide in the atmosphere due to natural processes.
FLUORINATED GASES
CFCS, or chlorofluorocarbon chains
CFCs were phased out by the Montreal Protocol due to their role in ozone depletion (described in Geography > Climatology > Polar Vortex).
In comparison to CO2, this manmade molecule has a far higher potential to intensify the greenhouse effect.
Hydrofluorocarbons
Hydrofluorocarbons find applications as solvents, fire retardants, aerosol propellants, and refrigerants.
These substances were created to take the place of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).
Regrettably, HFCs have a lengthy air lifespan and are strong greenhouse gasses.
PERFLUOROCARBONS
Perfluorocarbons are substances generated as byproducts of semiconductor and aluminum fabrication.
PFCs often have extended atmospheric lives and a strong potential for global warming, same like HFCs.
SULFUR HEXAFLUORIDE
Additionally, sulfur hexafluoride is a greenhouse gas.
It is utilized as a tracer gas for leak detection as well as in the synthesis of semiconductors and magnesium.
Circuit breakers and other electrical transmission equipment are made with sulfur hexafluoride.
BLACK CARBON
Global warming is exacerbated by black carbon (BC), a solid particle or aerosol that is not a gas.
Are soot and black carbon the same thing? Indeed.
Another term for black carbon is soot. One type of particle air pollution that results from incomplete combustion is soot.
Black carbon warms the earth when it settles on snow and ice because it absorbs heat from the atmosphere and reduces albedo, or the surface's capacity to reflect sunlight.
The air is directly heated by black carbon, which is the strongest absorber of sunshine.
Moreover, it melts ice and snow and darkens glaciers and snowpacks through deposition.
Black carbon interferes with cloud cover and monsoon rainfall locally.
Only a few days to weeks are spent in the atmosphere by black carbon.
Therefore, within months of cutting emissions, the impacts of black carbon on global warming and glacier retreat disappear.
BROWN CARBON
within months of cutting emissions, BC's effects on atmospheric warming and glacier retreat disappear.
One major source of brown carbon has been found as biomass burning, presumably from home wood burning.
While black carbon refers to particles like soot and dust created by impure combustion, brown carbon is more often thought of as a greenhouse gas.
GHG PROTOCOL
GHG Protocol is establishing guidelines, resources, and virtual instruction to help nations, localities, and companies monitor their advancement towards their climate objectives.
The Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG Protocol) creates frameworks for value chains, mitigation initiatives, and operations in the public and commercial sectors that result in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
When the World Resources Institute (WRI) and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) realized that an international standard for corporate GHG accounting and reporting was necessary, the GHG Protocol was born in the late 1990s.
What does "melting of the ice caps" mean?
Sea levels will rise as a result of glacier and ice cap melting.
Sea level rise is also a result of thermal expansion.
Saline water intrusions will deteriorate nearby land, and fertile coastal agricultural fields will be buried. Such locations' groundwater will become inefficient.
Coastal cities with a high population density will be buried beneath the ocean.
The country would suffer greatly from drought in the dry season and flooding in the Himalayas and Ganga plains during the wet season.
As snowmelt and the amount of frozen ground decreases, the amount of arable land in the high-latitude region is expected to rise.
Sea level rise and saline water inundations will also inevitably result in a reduction of arable land along the coastlines.
Severe Weather Occurrences
All economic gains will be negated by the increasing probability of catastrophic occurrences like heat waves, flooding, hurricanes, and so forth.
Agriculture will be significantly impacted by changes in rainfall patterns (see the floods in Kerala in 2018 and Chennai in 2015, for example).
Degradation of the environment
Because of the atypical behavior of the glaciers, less hydroelectric power will be generated, which will increase dependency on fossil fuels.
The list of "threatened" and "extinct" species will grow as a result of the widespread extinction of animal populations brought about by habitat loss.
Which health-related issues are on the rise?
The healthcare industry will be under increased strain due to the expansion of diseases (such as malaria, etc.) throughout the tropics.
It is anticipated that the frequency and intensity of heat waves and other extreme weather events would rise, leading to a rise in fatalities.
Drought-related freshwater shortages and flood-related pollution of freshwater sources compromise hygiene and raise the risk of diseases including cholera and diarrhea.
How did biodiversity disappear?
Sea level rise's effect on plankton loss will be detrimental to the marine food chain.
There will be a major loss of marine biodiversity as a result of coral reefs, or ocean rainforests, bleaching.
With the same production targets, rising temperatures would require more fertilizer, which would increase greenhouse gas emissions, ammonia volatilization, and crop production cost.
The physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of freshwater lakes and rivers will be further impacted by rising temperatures, endangering a wide variety of freshwater species.
Absence of Food Security
Crops are impacted by climate change in ways that include pest prevalence, insolation, and irrigation.
The frequency of storms, cyclones, floods, and droughts is probably going to increase the variability of agricultural production.
While crops in lower latitudes may suffer, moderate warming (an increase of 1 to 3°C in mean temperature) is predicted to boost crop production in temperate regions.
However, in some locations, the benefits may be outweighed by natural calamities brought on by global warming.
The increasing salinization of groundwater supplies resulting from sea level rise will intensify the limitations on water resources in coastal regions.
The decline of carbon sinks
Tropical rainforests do not store as much carbon as high-latitude forests do.
Taiga and tundra regions contain one-third of the world's soil-bound carbon.
Global warming causes permafrost to thaw, releasing carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere.
Due to global warming, the tundra, which was a carbon sink in the 1970s, is now a source of carbon. (Climate change contributes to additional climate change.)
Changes in Sea Level
Sea level change is the term used to describe variations in the average sea level over a sizable amount of time.
Mechanisms that lead to variations in sea level
Eustatic variations occur when the seawater content varies due to factors such as
A shift in the land's elevation causes tectonic shifts.
An increase or decrease in load results in isostatic adjustments. The landmass dipped during the ice ages due to the weight of the glacial ice. Conversely, landmasses increase as a result of the melting of glacial ice.
Large-scale continent tilting, which can cause one portion of the continent to rise while the other part sinks, is what causes epeirogenic movement, which gives the impression that the sea level is increasing.
Tall mountains are created by orogenic movement, which is the process of mountain development and an apparent fall in sea level.
The significance of comprehending changes in sea level
It offers important historical data on climate change. It aids in calculating the tectonic upliftment rates of earlier geological eras.
to assess the viability of industrial and agricultural growth in coastal areas.
to construct coastal embankments and dykes in order to safeguard low-lying nations.
We cannot map the places most likely to be subject to storm surges and sporadic flooding until we know which ones are most likely to be impacted by future sea level rise.
By pinpointing the areas that would soon be inundated, tidal power producing facilities can be constructed in appropriate locations.
Short-Term Shifts in the Global Sea Level
A year is filled with short-term changes.
Seasonal changes in sea level of 5–6 cm are typically seen throughout a year.
Sea level change that occurs in the short term could result from a complicated combination of the following:
Marine water density: The salinity and temperature of seawater affect its density. Because of its high salinity and low temperature, seawater has a high density, which causes the sea level to drop.
Local sea levels rise in response to low atmospheric pressure and vice versa. For instance, storm surge.
The ocean currents' speed: Sea level rises along the borders of swiftly flowing ocean currents that travel in curved paths.
Sea level differences between the two sides of a swiftly moving current are typically 18 cm.
Sea level drop and ice formation: During the winter, ocean water becomes trapped in the icecaps of the northern and southern hemispheres, causing sea levels to drop.
Water piling up along windward coasts: Localized sea level rise occurs in coastal areas when an air mass pushes water toward the coast. For example, the air mass moving inland during the monsoon season causes sea levels to rise in south and east Asia.
The following reasons have contributed to the short-term global sea level rise recorded in the 20th century.
Due to human-caused global warming, ocean water has warmed up during the last 100 years. Put another way, the sea level has risen by 10 to 15 centimeters throughout the past 100 years.
Sea levels have risen somewhat as a result of the melting of Antarctica's ice sheets, which make up around 3% of the world's total ice mass.
During the 20th century, about 15% of the Greenland ice cap's entire volume evaporated.
Together with these ice-melt locations, other glaciers are believed to have contributed roughly 48% of the global rise in sea level.
Extended
Global sea level fluctuations of more than 100 meters are feasible if large ice sheets melt or if the volume of the mid-oceanic ridge changes dramatically.
IMPACT OF FALLING SEA LEVELS
When sea levels fall, coral reefs die because the continental shelves on which they are developed dry up. As a result, new coral reefs form around the border of the dead corals.
Because there is less surface runoff where there are shallow continental shelves, the continental hinterland becomes more dry as the sea level drops.
In temperate and high-latitude locations, a drop in sea levels causes ice caps and glacial tongues to expand out onto continental shelves.
IMPACT OF A POSSIBLE SEA LEVEL INCREASE
If the temperature of the atmosphere continues to rise, Antarctica's ice loss may soon become dangerous.
The majority of the occupied land, which consists mostly of low-lying, heavily populated coastal districts, will be submerged. The little islands will also end up dead.
The planet's projected billion inhabitants will be impacted by an increase in sea levels.
Coastal infrastructure, like as ports and industrial institutions, may sustain immense damage.
Because coastal plains and deltas are composed of extremely fertile soils, about 33% of the world's croplands may be drowned as a result of sea level rise.
Beaches, coastal dunes, and bars may sustain harm or even collapse due to accelerated coastal erosion.
This means that a large portion of the coastal area will continue to be exposed to direct sea wave onslaught.
Because of the influx of marine water, the groundwater supplies of the coastal regions will be significantly damaged by salinization.
The environment will suffer greatly from the loss of the reefs, coral atolls, and deltas. New coral reefs will grow on the edges where the dead corals are located.
Because to the rising sea level, drainage basin mouths will be submerged. As a result, the rivers' lengthy profiles will need to be readjusted and most likely indicate a rise.
Islands have been most affected by the recent rise in sea level. Two of the affected islands are the Carteret Islands, which are located in the Pacific Ocean northeast of Papua New Guinea, and the Tuvalu Islands, which are located in the South Pacific around 1000 km north of Fiji.
The "Oceans and Coastal Areas Programme Activity Centre" was founded by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 1987 in order to look into the phenomena of sea level rise and identify the countries most at risk of submersion.
lowering atmospheric carbon in order to combat climate change.
Burning coal produces half of the electricity produced worldwide. For many years to come, coal will continue to be the predominant energy source.
The two main greenhouse gases emitted during the combustion of coal are CO2 and CO (carbon monoxide).
Nitrogen oxides, which destroy ozone, and sulfur oxides, which cause acid rain, are also released in addition to the aforementioned gases.
By employing a variety of technologies to clean coal and control its emissions, clean coal technology aims to lessen the negative effects coal has on the environment.
Prior to burning, several clean coal technologies cleanse the coal.
Coal washing is a method of coal preparation that involves combining crushed coal with a solvent and letting the particles separate and settle to remove undesirable minerals.
Particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, and sulfur dioxide emissions are reduced by other mechanisms that regulate the burning of coal.
Particles are charged with an electrical field in electrostatic precipitators, which subsequently collect the charged particles on collection plates.
Gasification completely eschews burning coal. Gasification is a process that breaks down carbon molecules in coal by combining it with steam and hot, pressured air or oxygen.
After that, the hydrogen and carbon monoxide-containing syngas is cleaned and used in a gas turbine to produce energy.
By spraying flue gas with limestone and water, wet scrubbers, also known as flue gas desulfurization systems, eliminate sulfur dioxide, a primary contributor to acid rain.
By limiting oxygen and controlling the combustion process, low-NOx (nitrogen oxides) burners lessen the production of nitrogen oxides, which are a contributing factor to ground-level ozone.
CARBON CAPTURE AND STORAGE
Carbon dioxide (CO2) from stationary sources, such as power plants, is captured and sequestered (hidden) by carbon capture and storage.
Capture: CO2 is extracted by flue-gas separation and condensed into a concentrated stream of CO2.
After being captured, the CO2 is sequestered in safe containers to delay or stop its re-entry into the atmosphere.
Geological and marine storage are the two choices (the CO2 must be hidden until peak emissions decrease hundreds of years from now).
Owing to this increase in atmospheric carbon, the ability of soil, plants, and trees to temporarily store the carbon released into the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels has received a lot of attention and hope.
A viable technique for mitigating global warming is to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels while simultaneously allowing trees and soil to absorb carbon dioxide, according to the Kyoto Protocol, the main instrument used by the worldwide community to limit global warming.
Note for UPSC Aspirants: For UPSC aspirants interested in exploring further, here are some keywords to guide your research:Greenhouse effect, climate change, sea levels, biodiversity, health, mitigation strategies.
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