Leaving Our Mark: Reducing Our Carbon Footprint

Leaving Our Mark: Reducing Our Carbon Footprint — page 1
Greenhouse Earth A layer of gases called the atmosphere surrounds our planet These gases protect Earth by burning up space rocks before they hit the planet and filtering out harmful radiation They also keep Earth's temperature warm and constant Without the atmosphere it would be too cold for life to exist on Earth Earth s atmosphere is made up of about 78 percent nitrogen and 21 percent oxygen The oxygen in the atmosphere is what allows us to breathe The remaining one percent is made up of the gases argon carbon dioxide and water vapor as well as tiny amounts of other gases Although carbon dioxide CO2 makes up only about 0 03 percent of the atmosphere it plays an important role Plants need carbon dioxide in order to make their food Carbon dioxide as well as other gases such as methane also trap the Sun s heat inside Earth's atmosphere When radiation from the Sun reaches Earth's surface some of it bounces back Some radiation will pass harmlessly through the atmosphere However if radiation hits molecules of Coz the I molecules will absorb the heat energy and trap it in the atmosphere Violent storms such as Hurricane Sandy could become more frequent as a result of rising temperatures In other areas droughts will become common more