Atmosphere Journal Entry
Greenhouse Gas Levels Keep Rising (May 12, 2008)
False-color satellite map shows greatest carbon dioxide levels in red. NASA.
The level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere keeps rising at an alarming rate. The concentration of carbon dioxide rose by 2.4 parts per million last year, according to a new National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) report.
The worldwide concentration of carbon dioxide is now 385 parts per million (ppm). Before the age of industry (pre-1850), levels were about 280 ppm.
Most scientists agree the carbon dioxide increase is feeding global warming due to the greenhouse effect. Carbon dioxide and other gases act like a huge blanket trapping solar energy in the atmosphere. Rising global temperatures are expected to trigger more extreme weather including stronger storms, worsening drought, and more violent floods.
Carbon dioxide isn't the only greenhouse gas to worry about. Methane levels rose 27 million tons last year. One reason is the big jump in the number of factories in Asia. Another is the increase of gas emissions from natural processes of decay from wetlands in the Arctic and the tropics. Molecule for molecule, methane is 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide in adding to the greenhouse effect. But there's much less of it in the atmosphere.
