Green House Effect
When the solar radiations strike the surface of earth, the infra red
rays show further increase in their wavelength which prevents them to
radiate back to the outer space by the envelope of gases like CO, CO2,
SO2, etc, which surround the earth’s atmosphere causing rise in
temperature. This retention of heat energy by earth due to the presense
of green house gases like Co, Co2, So2, etc is known as green house
effect or atmospheric effect.
The green houses gases like Co2, So2, etc. allow the penetration of
incoming solar radiations having short wave length but they prevent the
escaping of long wave length radiations (infra-red heat radiations) into
the outer space as their spectral properties is so, and reflect back on
the earth causing increase in temperature of earth.
Due to human civilization excessive amount of Co2 is being deposited in
the atmosphere through furnaces of power plants, automobiles, factories,
burning of charcoal or fossil fuels, etc. To some extent an increase in
CO2 level in atmosphere increases the rate of photosynthesis but further
increase pollute the air and water.
There are other gases also which cause the green house effect; they are
CO, SO2, NO2, methane (CH4) and CFCs.
The advantage of heat being trapped by CO2 in earth atmosphere is that
it probably helped to create the condition necessary for the evolution
of life on this planet. The mars is moderately warmed with too little
CO2 in its atmosphere, therefore it is frozen cold but venues is too
much of CO2 so it is like a dry furnace.
CONSEQUENCES:
Green house effect or atmospheric effect results in the increase in
temperature of earth as a whole causing global warming. The global
warming will be noticed by 2050 A.D. when the temperature would increase
by 1.5 to 4 degree celcius. The rise in temperature of earth’s
atmosphere results increase in sea level due to the melting of polar
ice-caps. Snow melting in the mountains would cause floods during
monsoon. Warming up of the atmosphere due to green house effect would
cause more hurricanes and cyclones nearby the oceans. Higher atmospheric
temperature would increase evaporation of water from the farms, thus
reduce the crop yield. And monsoon may even stop altogether or rainfall
may be altered.
This concludes the end of ‘Green House Effect’ article on Education @
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