This Lesson explores the topic of climate change and global warming. We will begin by exploring how the Earth’s global mean surface temperature is determined through a global balancing act of the rate of energy that comes from the Sun and the rate at which the planet returns that energy into space.
We will also discuss the natural greenhouse effect, and how this contributes to a balanced global climate.
We will then go on to consider the human impact on the atmosphere, including the impact of industrialisation, other sources of greenhouse gases that are connected to humans and the numerous and varied means of measuring climate change that is available.