What is climate change
Weather changes day to day sometimes it rains, other days it’s hot. Climate is the pattern of the weather conditions over a long period of time for a large area. And climate can be affected by Earth’s atmosphere.
Our Earth is surrounded by an atmosphere made up of gases. When sunlight
enters our atmosphere, some of the sun’s heat is trapped by the gas, and
some bounces back out into space. By trapping that heat, our atmosphere keeps
Earth warm enough to live on. Without it, our planet would be very cold,
like Mars.
Earth’s climate has always naturally cycled through change, caused by
how much of the sun’s energy was absorbed by the atmosphere. In fact over the
past 650,000 years, the Earth has gone through seven ice ages and warming
periods.
Climate change affects more than temperature. Warmer water changes the
patterns of ocean currents, affecting global weather patterns.
Some places will receive more rainfall, which could lead to flooding,
while other places will get less, which might mean drought. Tropical storms
could be stronger, and a continuing rise in sea level due to melting polar ice
might push people out of their homes.
Other species will benefit from a warmer world—but in some cases that
would be bad news for humans. Because disease-carrying mosquitoes thrive
in warm, wet weather, more people could contract illnesses such as malaria as
the Earth warms.
What can we do about it?
We can make a lot, It’s simple to make a difference to keep the Earth
healthy. Try some of these tips to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide you add
to the atmosphere.
- Instead of traveling
in a car, use public transportation, walk, or ride your bike when you can.
Biking or walking 10 miles each day instead of riding in a car can save up
to 1.9 tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere every year.
- Reduce and reuse
things as much as possible. Factories emit lots of carbon dioxide when
making new products. (Buying products that are made with recycled glass
and plastic also emits carbon dioxide, though less so.) Fix your
appliances and clothes instead of buying new products. Good thing holey jeans are
back in style!
- Wash your clothes in
cold water, and hang them to dry.
- Electronics use energy
even when they’re turned off, so unplug them when you’re not using them. It
could save your family about $200 a year on its energy bill.
- Eat less meat and dairy. Farm animals, er, emit another heat-trapping gas, methane. And some studies have found that livestock account for about half of the world’s heat-trapping gas
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