1.5 Climate Change

4 principal air components:

Nitrogen

Oxygen

Argon

CO2

4 principal air components %: Nitrogen

78.084%

4 principal air components %: Oxygen

20.90%

4 principal air components %: Argon

0.93%

4 principal air components: ppm: Carbon dioxide

0.36% ppm

Increased CO2 emission f(time) formula

CH₄ + 2O₂ → CO₂ + 2H₂O

therefore,

• with every ton of fossil oil or coal burnt and transformed to energy, about 0.8 tons of carbon are oxidized,

• 3 tons of CO2 are released into the atmosphere

Largest sectors with greater emissions: top 3

1. Electricity and heat (energy)

2. Industry (chemicals, metals, other)

3. Agriculture, forestry, and land use

We want to keep Earth’s temp at: according to Paris Agreement

1.5 C

but it is not looking realistic since we would have to go net zero by 2050

A simple representation of energy floe

Earth reflects radiation but it’s dependent upon:

surface like ice.

Albedo

The ratio of the outgoing solar radiation reflected by an object to the incoming solar radiation incident upon it.

Albedo is the measure of how much incoming solar radiation (sunlight) a surface reflects back into space.

• High albedo → more sunlight reflected → less warming

• Low albedo → more sunlight absorbed → more warming

Wavelength of light a key factor in global warming

Wavelength matters because Earth receives mostly shortwave solar energy but emits energy as longer-wave infrared radiation, which greenhouse gases can absorb.

Transmission, reflection, and absorption