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Greenhouse. The Natural Greenhouse Effect. Atmosphere. Our atmosphere is made up of several gases These gases include water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone . These gases help to trap in heat and keep the Earth warm. . Gases.
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Atmosphere • Our atmosphere is made up of several gases • These gases include water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. • These gases help to trap in heat and keep the Earth warm.
Gases • Water vapor occurs naturally as part of the water cycle. • Carbon dioxide occurs naturally when plants and animals undergo cellular respiration.
Gases • Nitrous oxide occurs naturally when plants decompose and rot. • Ozone occurs naturally and helps protect us from harmful UV radiation from the sun. • Methane occurs naturally when cattle digest their food and from certain plants like rice.
How does it work? • The Sun sends energy to Earth in the form of light. • Some of that energy is reflected back into space. • The rest reaches Earth’s surface and changes to heat. • The heat is trapped by the Earth’s atmosphere. • This heat helps to regulate the temperature of Earth.
How does it work? • The atmosphere helps to keep the Earth warm even at night when we are not receiving sunlight. • The difference in temperature on Earth between day and night is usually only about 10 degrees. • By comparison, the moon (which is about the same distance from the sun that we are) has great difference between its temperature during the day and night. • This difference can be up to 100 degrees.
Where did the name come from? • We call this the greenhouse effect because it acts similar to the way human-built greenhouses work. • The glass of the greenhouse is designed to allow light in and trap the resultingheat in order to grow plants out of season. • The atmosphere works much the same way the glass of a greenhouse works.
Climate Change • If the balance of gases in our atmosphere is changed, this can result in climate change. • Burning fossil fuels puts extra carbon dioxide into the air which throws off the balance of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. • This traps in too much heat inside our atmosphere and is a major contributor to climate change