5 Notorious Greenhouse Gases | Greenhouse gas example
Thecurationofthiscontentisatthediscretionoftheauthor,andnotnecessarilyreflectiveoftheviewsofEncyclopaediaBritannicaoritseditorialstaff.Forthemostaccurateandup-to-dateinformation,consultindividualencyclopediaentriesaboutthetopics.©ixer/Shutterstock.comGreenhousegasesareahottopic(punintended)whenitcomestoglobalwarming.ThesegasesabsorbheatenergyemittedfromEarth’ssurfaceandreradiateitbacktotheground.Inthisway,theycontributetothegreenhouseeffect,whichkeepstheplanetfromlosingallofitsheatfromthesur...
The curation of this content is at the discretion of the author, and not necessarily reflective of the views of Encyclopaedia Britannica or its editorial staff. For the most accurate and up-to-date information, consult individual encyclopedia entries about the topics.
© ixer/Shutterstock.comGreenhouse gases are a hot topic (pun intended) when it comes to global warming. These gases absorb heat energy emitted from Earth’s surface and reradiate it back to the ground. In this way, they contribute to the greenhouse effect, which keeps the planet from losing all of its heat from the surface at night. The concentrations of various greenhouse gases in the atmosphere determine how much heat is absorbed by the atmosphere and reradiated back to the surface. Human acti...