The alleged greenhouse effect and global warming:

Anthropogenically raised CO₂ concentrations in the atmosphere have caused and will cause absorption of energy in the atmosphere (an enhanced "greenhouse effect") leading to non-natural increases in temperatures on Earth ("global warming").

Questions: (to be answered in this lecture)

1. Do humans do things that can raise the CO₂ content of the atmosphere?

CO₂ production

US vs. world energy consumption

2. Has the CO₂ content of the atmosphere increased?

Atmospheric CO₂ concentrations through time Part 1

Atmospheric CO₂ concentrations through time Part 2

3: Have humans caused the increase in the CO₂ content of the atmosphere?

Timing of human CO₂ production

Localized evidence of human CO₂ production

Global evidence of addition of fossil-fuel CO₂ to the atmosphere

4. Can gaseous CO₂ absorb energy to heat the atmosphere?

Earth's incoming and outgoing radiation

CO₂ vibrations and absorption of energy

Adsorption spectra of CO₂, methane, ozone, nitrous oxide, water vapour, etc.

5. Can higher CO₂ concentrations cause heating of the atmosphere?

Quaternary CO₂ and temperature

Phanerozoic and Pleistocene CO₂ and temperature

6. Has absorption of energy in the atmosphere by CO₂ increased?

Satellite detection of greenhouse absorption of outgoing radiation

7. Has the earth become warmer during or since the Industrial Revolution?

Temperatures through time 1800s-1900s

Temperatures through time 1000-1900s

8. Has the increase in global temperature been a continuation of natural trends/fluctuations or the result of anthropogenic CO₂?

Long-term temperature fluctuations

Extrapolations of natural temperature fluctuations before 1800

Calculations of natural and anthropgenic effects through time (colored lines) vs. observed temperatures through time (black line).

Back to Railsback's main page

Back to the UGA Geology Home Page