global warming Essay

Global Warming. Is it caused by us?

“…Climate change is now with us. It will not go away.”(Musil, 17) Many of us have noticed that our Earth is getting warmer. We seem to ignore what is going on and just continue with our everyday life. There is evidence that our climate has been getting warmer ever year. Some scientist believe it is because of green house gases. Green house gases include the carbon dioxide from gases that our industry produces, methane gases that cows put off, and some believe it has nothing to do with things living on Earth. The scientist that believe we have nothing to do with global warming believe that the sun’s temperatures has something to do with it. There are some people who think that global warming is not a major crisis. The fact is that the planet is getting warmer. No scientist dines that fact, but reason why varies. We the people of the United States can also do things to help stop global warming. Global warming is define as “an increase in the earth's average atmospheric temperature that causes corresponding changes in climate and that may result from the greenhouse effect.”(www.dictionary.reference.com) Over the last century the average temperature on Earth has increased by one degrees Celsius. One degree Celsius may not seem like much, but it is. Earth’s temperature depends on that giant glowing ball in the sky known as the sun. Most energy from the sun is reflected back into space, but some is trapped in by our atmosphere because of greenhouse gases which cause our temperature to rise. The temperature change caused warmer seas, which caused bigger hurricanes. For example the most recently disastrous hurricane, in 2006 was hurricane Katrina. Katrina destroyed almost all of New Orleans. Katrina also killed around two thousand people, and left thousands homeless. A warmer climate also causes draught, coastal flooding,, and higher El Nino winds. Just warmer temperatures in general has side affects. Like in 2003, when a heat wave hit Europe. That caused more than fifty thousand people to die, just from the heat! Also the extinction of frogs in the rain forests, and decreasing number of polar bears is another sign of global warming. Polar bears can not hunt food on thinning ice. They are starving to death, or drowning. Pretty soon there will be none left. There is tons of evidence that shows that the warming planet is a dangerous thing. People tend to forget about it because it seems like it is happening slowly to them, but to the Earth perspective it is happening quite quickly. In the last ten years three of the most highest temperatures ever had been recorded. Also some scientist believe we should be in a cooling down period not a heating up period, according to Earths temperature records. People need to wake up and pay attention to what is happening around them. Global warming is real. One reason, that is contributing to Earth getting warmer is because of cows. Cows produce five hundred liters of methane a day. Methane gases are worse than carbon dioxide. “According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, cattle farming is responsible for almost one fifth of man-made global warming.” (http://knowledge.allianz.com/en/globalissues/climate_change/global_warming_basics/methane_livestock_global_warming.html) Cows produce methane gases because of the way they digest their food. Recently scientist and farmers have been coming up with ways to reduce the methane gases that cows produce. They have been experimenting with different pills, that is suppose to reduce their methane out put. Also farmers have been changing their cows diets, and the environment that they live in. What some people have done is eat less dairy products to reduce the demand in cows . People can switch over to eating more pigs, than cows. Another belief that is causing Global Warming is the increase in carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is the second most harmful greenhouse gas. Carbon dioxide has increased in our atmosphere

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Global Warming

Global Warming