Global Warming
Climate is an average of weather conditions within a relatively small geographical area over a long duration of a number of years. Climate of any place could change with time but in most cases, it is mostly constant. On a global scale, the average climatic conditions have been observed to change within the last one century. The most noticeable change of the average global climate is the increase in temperatures with values of approximately 0.750C. This increase in average global temperatures has occurred within the last one century starting from 1906.
The increase in temperature has had many effects on the surface of the earth. One of these effects is the melting of the Pitztal Glacier at the top of the Alps. During the summer this glacier melts so much that a stream of water constantly flows through the Hooker valley. As a result, ski resort owners on this glacier cannot conduct their business. Actually, these business people have had to device artificial means of slowing down the melting of the glacier. They custom made huge blankets that cover approximately 15 acres to protect the glacier from the increasing temperatures. This strategy has helped them stay in business. One climatologist noted that the rate at which glaciers on the Alps are losing mass was much higher than in the past. The climatologist made this comment during an experiment during which she found an area under experiment having dropped by about one foot due to melting.
There are a number of other negative effects of global warming. In the study of this global climatic change, scientists have conducted several studies to understand the causes of this change. These studies have shown that global warming is caused by the presence of green house gases in the atmosphere. These gases are introduced by human beings into the atmosphere through ways such as emissions from combustion processes that use fossil fuels. Of these gases from combustion, carbon dioxide has the worst effects in terms of global warming. Other green house gases include methane and nitrous oxide. The term greenhouse is used because these gases usually trap heat within the atmosphere making it warmer than it would be without such gases.
Despite the existence of the global warming challenge, it is still possible to save the situation. This would include measures such as increasing forestlands and improving vehicle combustion systems. The global warming effects are quite bad and are getting worse by the day. It will take huge efforts to prevent the bad situation from getting worse.