One of the most politically charged topics of the day, climate change—also referred to as global warming—has become a great challenge for humankind the world over. Climate change refers to the prevailing theory that human activity is causing rapid warming in the earth’s climate, and these changes will lead (and are already leading) to great damage to natural ecosystems and human civilization.
This article on climate change is a continuation from a previous issue of Rip magazine.
The Science Part 3: Combustion
What is it about carbon-based fossil fuels that creates such amazing energy? The answer lies in the molecule. Let’s look at the example of gasoline, a liquid solution containing various organic compounds, known as hydrocarbons (because they contain carbon atoms and hydrogen atoms). Gasoline, derived from petroleum, or oil, mined from deep underground, is a fossil fuel used to power many vehicles.
The most energy-potent fuels contain chemicals in which carbon atoms bond to each other. Carboncarbon bonds are significantly stronger than most other chemical bonds. When the carbon bonds break, a tremendous amount of energy is released, and this energy is what we harness for our use. How do we break those strong carbon bonds? The answer is a very common chemical reaction called combustion. You may think of combustion as just “burning something.” In some ways that is a correct assessment. But in reality, burning something is a chemical reaction in which a fuel—in this case a hydrocarbon—combines with oxygen in the atmosphere in the presence of heat. Remember, fire only burns when there is enough oxygen! This reaction produces energy and new chemicals. Let’s look at the simplified chemical reaction involved in octane, a hydrocarbon commonly found in gasoline:
In other words: Octane plus oxygen, in the presence of heat, turns into water (usually as steam) and carbon dioxide.
The same chemical reaction that produces the amazingly powerful energy driving our modern life also produces carbon dioxide, the greenhouse gas. When we burn fossil fuels, we release CO2 into the atmosphere, creating higher and higher concentrations of greenhouse gas.
The Effects of Climate Change
There is a lot to be worried about when it comes to climate change. Here is a list of some of the major effects:
Record-breaking heat: Over the past few years, we have experienced steadily rising global temperatures. The 17 warmest years in recorded history have all happened since 1998. As global greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise, temperatures will follow suit. Scientists predict that some areas, particularly some tropical, subtropical and desert regions, will be too hot for people to live in by the end of the century.
Sea-level rise: As the earth warms, glaciers in the Arctic and Antarctica melt, dumping billions of gallons of water into the oceans. To make matters more frightening, as water warms, it expands (this phenomenon is known as thermal expansion), so the warmer waters increase the mass of the world’s oceans, exacerbating the current sea level rise. Some sea-level predictions are truly frightening, showing some of the world’s most populated regions underwater by the end of the century. Miami, Rio de Janeiro, and Shanghai are three very large and very populated cities that the UN predicts will drown due to sea level rise.
Extreme climate events: Global climate change does not just mean the temperature will get warmer everywhere. The change in global temperature will impact the global air and ocean currents, and will most likely cause changing patterns in major storms such as hurricanes and typhoons. Moreover, areas prone to drought and wildfires, like what we have seen in California over the past few years, will experience more droughts in greater intensity. Population centers that rely on seasonal glacier meltwater will experience crisis as glaciers disappear.
Ecological impacts: The global ecological impacts of climate change are vast, as climate change disrupts the delicate balance that maintains ecosystems. Plants and wildlife adapted to specific ecosystems are either dying off or being forced to adapt to changing conditions. Impacts include growth in devastating diseases that harm crops and wildlife; destruction and saltwater inundation of vital coastal wetlands; and death of the ocean’s great coral reefs due to warming and acidification of ocean water. According to scientists, we are currently in the midst of a great extinction: a purge of life on the planet seen only five other times in the earth’s 4.5 billion years, and this extinction is a direct result of humans and our domination and manipulation of earth’s resources.
Is There Hope?
Yes, there’s hope! While the effects of climate change have already begun, and certain impacts are now unavoidable, there are significant steps that must be taken in the next several decades (and indeed many countries are now implementing) in order to mitigate the damage and adapt to the changing climate. These steps include transitioning energy sources to non-polluting, non-emitting renewable energy. Renewable energy sources include the sun (it always shines) and wind (it’s always blowing). But there are many other sources of renewable energy that are being developed and even used today, including plant-based fuels, renewable fuel-cell batteries, hydroelectric power (dams), geothermal power (harnessing the heat coming from below the surface of the earth), and many others.[row]
[column size=’1/2′]Despite a seeming lack of political interest in addressing climate change in the United States, organizations here and around the world, including governments of other countries, are working with urgency to mitigate catastrophe from climate change. These efforts include planting trees, limiting carbon emissions, subsidizing green energy industries,implementing sustainable farming practices, and carbon sequestration—capturing and storing emitted carbon dioxide underground. Already, three countries (Albania, Iceland and Paraguay) are powered by 100 percent renewable sources. A number of other countries, including Norway, Denmark, Austria, and Costa Rica get most of their energy from renewable sources. Recently, India—a nation with 17 percent of the world’s population —announced the phasing out of all gas-powered cars by 2030. And a global renewable energy industry, driven by human ingenuity and free markets, is growing fast and strong.
There really is no limit to human ingenuity! In less than 100 years, we have developed technologies to fly to the moon and to Mars, to travel to the other side of the world, put hundreds of satellites into orbit, store billions of pages of data on a tiny chip, revolutionized the harvest and production of food so very few people go hungry, defeated insurmountable diseases, and created new technologies that allow us to communicate with each other no matter how far away or remote we are. There is no doubt that, given the will, we can transform our energy and save the future of our planet for our children.
Hello.
Good work. I’m with you, and have been creating climate impact posters @ Good Nature Publishing for years.
I think planting trees is one way I talk to people about the need to take action.
But all your steps here are excellent starting points for the radical reset we need to grow the restoration society we need to survive.
Peace of wildlife to you
Timothy
Comments are closed.