The thing about global warming

Shall we start at the beginning?

The global warming is the increase in the average temperature of the oceans and the air layer close to the Earth's surface - observed since the pre-industrial period (between 1850 and 1900) -, which may be a consequence of natural causes and human activities (One Planet).

This warming is mainly due to the burning of fossil fuels, which increases the levels of greenhouse gases – especially carbon dioxide (CO2) – in the Earth's atmosphere. 

It is estimated that, since the pre-industrial period, Human activities have increased Earth's global average temperature by about 1°C. Currently, this number has grown by more than 0,2°C per decade (NASA*).

Please note…

That the greenhouse effect is a natural atmospheric phenomenon – caused by a series of gases that retain part of the heat radiated by the Earth – responsible for maintaining life on the planet. Without it, the Earth's temperature would be very low, making the survival of several species impossible. 

These gases are called greenhouse gases (GHGs), composed mainly of carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O) and water vapor, among others (world education).

Normally, part of the solar radiation that reaches our planet is reflected and returns directly to space and another part is absorbed by the oceans and the Earth's surface. There is still a part retained by this layer of gases, which causes the so-called greenhouse effect. (WWF).

The problem, therefore, is not the natural phenomenon, but rather its worsening.

Many human activities, especially the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation, have contributed to the increase in the concentration of these gases in the atmosphere and, as a consequence, raised the Earth's average temperature, giving rise to climate change.

This NASA video shows Earth's warming from 1880 to 2020. The wavy colors represent the average increase in temperature over the period, which has intensified in recent years:

And don't think that it takes a lot of heating to make a difference. We are not talking about 10°C here.

Global warming of 3°C would already produce catastrophic effects.

Heat waves – which are hitting different regions of the world, causing disastrous effects –, for example, are natural phenomena on the planet and existed before climate change. However, scientific evidence supports that, with the increase in global warming, these extreme events tend to repeat themselves more and more (G1).

A recent study showed that the UK heatwave – which saw the country set record temperatures this year – was at least 10 times more likely to occur today (Axios*), much warmer due to human-caused climate change compared to the pre-industrial era.

Considering that a clean, healthy, sustainable environment is a human right, we all have a duty to mitigate the climate crisis. This is a collective fight.

Do not know where to start? Get informed and share quality information. O Curto help you!

Curto curation:

• Veja the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report on the impacts of global warming of 1,5°C (IPCC*);
• Will we be History? Documentary shows how climate change affects the environment and how we need to act, as a society, to prevent more animal species from becoming extinct, as well as to save native communities around the Earth. Check out the trailer!

• Fact Check: Why Climate Change Is Real (DW*)
• Black and poor people are more affected by environmental risks, study shows
• Learn More Hot weather, a new podcast from Rádio Novelo, presented by journalist Giovana Girardi, which investigates the forces that prevent Brazil from moving on the right path to combat climate change.

Featured photo: Reproduction/Pixabay

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