Global warming is the result of burning fuels. When we burn oil, coal or wood, greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane, are released into the atmosphere, which rise upwards and create a blanket around the Earth.
Short-wave radiation from the Sun can pass through the blanket. But the long-wave radiations from the Earth cannot go through it. This makes the Earth get hotter and hotter. This is called the ‘greenhouse effect’ and causes global warming.
Increasing pollution creates a cloud of carbon dioxide around the earth.
Long wave radiations bounce to and from the surface of the earth and the blanket.
Ozone hole
The ozone layer exists about 15-50 kilometers above the Earth. It shields the Earth from the harmful ultraviolet radiation of the Sun. Ultraviolet rays have the capacity of altering the genetic structures of plants and animals.
They can also cause skin diseases. Because of the fumes produced by the factories and automobiles, holes have been formed in the ozone layer allowing more and more ultraviolet rays enter the Earth. One such hole has been noticed just above Antarctica which has adversely affected the growth of plankton in that area. Experts believe that gases used in refrigerators, air conditioners and aerosols are destroying the ozone layer. These gases are called (CFCs) hlorofluoro carbons.
Hole in the ozone layer allows the entrance of harmful ultraviolet rays of the sun to enter in Earth’s atmosphere.
