Intro

Global Warming 97% of scientists agree. Its happening. Yet only 63% of Americans do. Youve
all probably heard of it. But what exactly is global warming? What causes it? What can be done
to stop it? These questions will all be answered in the next 3 minutes.
Global Warming
In order to answer the question of what global warming is, we first need to take a step back and
look at the overall structure of the atmosphere. The atmosphere is basically just a big mixture of
gases. It is made up of 99% Nitrogen and Oxygen with the remaining 1% being taken up by
0.93% Argon, 0.039% Carbon Dioxide and a tiny jumble of other gases. Carbon Dioxide, or
CO2, is the gas that plays a critical role in global warming. Global warming is essentially the
increase in global temperatures due to an increase in greenhouse gases. Greenhouse gases,
which include CO2, methane or CH4, and nitrous oxide or N20, are gases that are involved in
the greenhouse effect, which is the process by which the surface of the Earth is warmed. This
process is a good thing, in fact we wouldnt be able to live on the surface if it werent for these
greenhouse gases as it would be too cold. Unfortunately, the amount of CO2 has been
increasing rapidly since the 1850s, mostly due to the burning of fossil fuels. Because CO2 is so
good at trapping heat, its increase causes the global temperatures to rise. According to NASA,
the global temperatures have increased 1.4 degrees F since 1880. So now you know more
about the science of global warming, but what are the consequences? Well for one, if the
temperatures keep rising, it could get to the point where Earth is virtually uninhabitable. Also,
the rising temperature is causing all of the polar ice sheets to melt, which is causing the sea
levels to rise. This could make flooding more and more common and, possibly make certain
land pieces uninhabitable.
Solutions
Now that you know all about global warming, you probably want to know how we can solve it.
Unfortunately, there isnt a clear solution. There are many different organizations trying to think
of different ways to go about it. In December 2015, 195 nations met in France to discuss
solutions for this massive problem. They ended up signing a climate change accord that will
attempt to get participating countries to commit to lowering greenhouse gas emissions. This is a
massive step in the right direction as almost every country is involved and is aware of the
effects global warming can have on our planet. President Obama has also announced his own
climate action plan which involves numerous actions that will cut down on energy usage,
eliminate the usage of power plants, and lower greenhouse gas emissions. These plans are
great for the long term, but what can you do now? At home, you can recycle, make sure your
home is properly insulated and replace your light bulbs with energy efficient models. You can
use renewable fuels to fill up your car instead of regular petroleum. The best thing you can do,
however, is to spread the word of global warming.
Conclusion
Global Warming. 97% of scientist agree. Do you?
Sources:

 Textbook
http://climate.nasa.gov/
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/13/world/europe/climate-change-accordparis.html?_r=0
https://www.whitehouse.gov/share/climate-action-plan
http://www3.epa.gov/climatechange/wycd/