The Global Threat of Global Warming

Our planet has gone through many cycles of heating and cooling during the almost five billion years of its history. But in the last 100 years, earth has witnessed an unusual increase in the average temperature of its atmosphere and water bodies – the phenomenon popularly known as global warming. Scientific observations and records show that the increase in earth’s average temperature has been very pronounced in our recent past. In fact, out of the 20 warmest years in earth’s recorded history, 19 lie in our recent past, occurring after 1980. Since the year 2000, three of these hottest 19 years touched our planet. Is it anything to worry about? Certainly! It is virtually interfering with the sleep of sentient and caring individuals!

More than one cause has been held responsible for global warming, including both natural and anthropogenic (human) factors. The leading cause, as scientists know it now, is the well-known concept called the greenhouse effect. This happens when the heat radiating back from the earth is trapped in the atmosphere close to the earth’s surface. Certain gases, called the greenhouses gases, and water vapors in the atmosphere are responsible for accommodating this heat and keeping it close to earth’s surface, resulting in the increase in temperature that characterizes global warming. On one hand, this effect is very important for supporting life on earth as it prevents the planet from getting too cold. But excess of greenhouse effect, as we have started to experience now, means big trouble.

The impact of global warming on the environment and living conditions of earth is a multi-faced problem. It poses several threats to healthy, comfortable, and stable life on earth. Some of the main issues of concern related to global warming are:

o    Melting of polar glaciers which can lead to devastating floods and other natural disasters
o    Loss of balance in seasonal variations, bringing long summers and short winters
o    Loss of natural habitat for many living species and possibly causing their extinction
o    Rise in the incidence of diseases that prevail in warm climates
o    Damage to crop production
o    Acidification of oceans and large-scale killing of marine life
o    Increase in the incidence and intensity of forest fires

Given the many adverse effects of global warming, our life on earth is at an increased risk, including a threat to our very survival in the long run. Given the fact that much of the global warming phenomenon is a direct result of the greenhouse effect, which in turn is largely the result of anthropogenic activity, we need not give up and let the monster take us. Instead, it is time for us to seriously start playing a responsible role in mitigating the activities that tend to aggravate the problem of global warming. Much is being done and planned to get over the challenge of harnessing the greenhouse effect and green projects today list it at the top of the earth’s most important issues.

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