How do greenhouse gases such as CO₂ and N₂O contribute to an increase in Earth’s atmospheric temperature?
A. Greenhouse gases interact with infrared photons and reflect them back to Earth’s surface.
B. Greenhouse gases chemically react with one another, releasing heat in the process.
Greenhouse gases do not primarily contribute to Earth's atmospheric temperature increase through chemical reactions with each other. Instead, their role lies in trapping heat in the atmosphere through the greenhouse effect, as explained above.C. Greenhouse gases agitate visible light photons, increasing the photons’ temperature and motion energy.
Greenhouse gases do not agitate visible light photons to increase their temperature and motion energy. Their interaction with infrared photons, as described earlier, is what leads to the trapping of heat in the Earth's atmosphere.D. Greenhouse gases generate internal heat through radioactive decay, similar to the core of Earth.
Greenhouse gases do not generate internal heat through radioactive decay. The main mechanism through which greenhouse gases such as CO₂ and N₂O contribute to the increase in Earth's atmospheric temperature is through the greenhouse effect, where they trap heat in the atmosphere and prevent it from escaping into space.Final answer:
Greenhouse gases such as CO₂ and N₂O contribute to an increase in Earth’s atmospheric temperature through the greenhouse effect, where they trap heat in the atmosphere and prevent it from escaping into space.
Explanation:
The increase in Earth's atmospheric temperature is mainly due to the greenhouse effect caused by greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO₂) and nitrous oxide (N₂O). These gases trap heat in the atmosphere and prevent it from escaping into space, similar to how the glass panes of a greenhouse keep heat from escaping. When heat energy from the sun strikes the Earth, greenhouse gases absorb and re-radiate a portion of that energy back to the Earth's surface, effectively increasing the temperature of the Earth and the atmosphere.
How do greenhouse gases impact the Earth's climate? Greenhouse gases impact the Earth's climate by trapping heat in the atmosphere, leading to global warming and climate change. This trapping of heat alters the Earth's temperature, weather patterns, and ecosystems, affecting both human societies and natural environments.