Greenhouse Gases

L.G. Explain the Greenhouse effect. Identify which gases contribute to the Greenhouse effect and what proccesses occur to release them.

Greenhouse Gases:

  • Water Vapour - Formed when water evaporates

  • Carbon Dioxide - Product of respiration for organisms and the gas released from Industrial proccesses

  • Methane - Reveriors beneath the surface of the Earth. Decomposing animals and animals produce methane as apart of their digestion

  1. CO2 - Combustion of fossil fuels

  2. H2O - Evaporation of lake

  3. CH4 - Animals decomposing

Greenhouse Effect

  • The radiation from the Sun is absorbed by the Earth’s surface and warms it.

  • Works the same way a greenhouse works: Taps heat (Short wave visible light), Warm surfaces emit long wave infrared radiation.

  • Multiple rays of light:

  • - Short wave → Can pass through glass

  • - Long wave → Can’t pass through glass

  • - Infrared is trapped by glass, causing the air to warm

Infrared is trapped by greenhouse gases like CO2, methane, and water vapour causing the atmosphere to warm.

Greenhouse gases absorb outgoing infrared, causing the atmosphere to warm.

Questions & Answers:

What is the Greenhouse Effect?

  • The greenhouse effect is when the Suns short rays passthrough the atmosphere and reflect off of the surface to become long waves that get trapped in the atmosphere.

Name 2 Greenhouse gases?

  • Water Vapour

How does the greenhouse effect help keep Earth warm?

  • The greenhouse effectt helps keep the Earth warm by trapping the infrared rays (long rays) which heats up our planet.

Why is the greenhouse effect important for life?

  • The greenhouse effect is important for life on Earth because the Earth need to be hot enough to sustain life.

What human activities increase the greenhouse effect?

  • Deforestation

  • Burning Fossil Fuels

  • Pollution

What problem can happpen when the greenhouse effect gets too strong?

  • The world will have increased and hightened natural disaters

Give one example of how climate change affects people or nature?

  • The polar bears are losing their habitat

The greenhouse effect is when the suns short rays pass through the Earths Atmosphere then reflects off of the planet which becomes long “Infrared“ rays which cannot leave our atmosphere. Humans have increased the speed of the greenhouse effect because of deforestation and burning fossil fuels. Thes will impact the Earths climate by heating up the planet and increasing the strength and amount of Natural disasters.

Combustion

Cultural Burning:

What it is: Traditional burning practises by Aboriginal peoples for tens of thousands of years.

Purpose: Maintaining healthy landscapes, promotes regrowth, and protects important plants and animals.

How it helps: Uses low-intensity, cool burns that prevent fuel build-up and restore natural balance to the land.

Back Burning:

What it is: A fire delibrately lit along the inside of a firebreak ahead of an approaching bushfire.

Purpose: Burns the vegetation between the firebreak and the oncoming fire.

How it helps: Removes fuel in the fire’s path so the main fire runs out of material to burn and slows down.