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Carbon dioxide (CO2) traps heat in the atmosphere primarily through the greenhouse effect, where it absorbs and re-emits infrared radiation emitted by the Earth's surface. While it's challenging to quantify the exact amount of heat CO2 traps, it is estimated that CO2 contributes significantly to global warming, with its concentration in the atmosphere rising from about 280 parts per million before the industrial revolution to over 420 ppm today. This increase enhances the greenhouse effect, leading to higher global temperatures. Overall, CO2 is a key factor in climate change, although it is one of several greenhouse gases influencing the Earth's energy balance.
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What gas is 20 times better at collecting heat than carbon dioxide?
Methane blocks heat radiation twenty times more effectively per molecule than does carbon dioxide. Fortunately, atmospheric methane concentrations are very much lower than carbon dioxide.
How the presence of the carbon dioxide in Venus' atmosphere causes the average surface temp of Venus to be higher than the average surface temp on Mercury?
Carbon dioxide is what is colloquially known as a greenhouse gas. This means that while it is transparent to the incoming sunlight in the visible spectrum, it is opaque to the infrared frequencies by which a planet loses heat at night. So an atmosphere with carbon dioxide in it is like a warm blanket, wrapped around a planet, keeping in the heat. Earth has only about a third of one percent carbon dioxide in its atmosphere, so the greenhouse effect is not that strong. Venus, on the other hand, has a much higher concentration of carbon dioxide, and a much stronger greenhouse effect.
Is The atmosphere stores much more carbon dioxide than the oceans?
False.
How does carbon and the atmosphere interact?
The carbon cycle moves carbon in and out of the atmosphere, the land, plants and animals, and the oceans. Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is a greenhouse gas that keeps the planet warm. Too much carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, from humans adding it by burning fossil fuels, is causing an accelerated greenhouse effect, global warming.
Do venus and earth have the same amount of carbon dioxide?
No, Venus has far more carbon dioxide. Earth's atmosphere is about .04% carbon dioxide. By contrast, Venus has an atmosphere that is 96% carbon dioxide and 93 times thicker than earth's. This means that Venus' atmosphere contains over 200,000 times more CO2 than earth's atmosphere does.
What gas is 20 times better at collecting heat than carbon dioxide?
Methane blocks heat radiation twenty times more effectively per molecule than does carbon dioxide. Fortunately, atmospheric methane concentrations are very much lower than carbon dioxide.
What happens when the atmosphere has a higher percentage of carbon dioxide and lower oxygen?
The Earth will become hotter as carbon dioxide traps heat to keep the Earth warm. But too much carbon dioxide will cause the Earth to be more warm and that lead to global warming.
Is there more nitrogen or carbon dioxide in earth's atmosphere?
There is much more nitrogen in earth's atmosphere than carbon dioxide. Nitrogen forms about 79%, while carbon dioxide makes up about 0.04%.
Does respiration decrease or increase the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere?
Respiration (breathing) has no effect on the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Breathing is part of the carbon cycle. We take in carbon in our food and drink and we release it again when we breathe. If we eat too much, the extra carbon is stored in our bodies, making us fatter, in much the same way as a tree stores carbon in its wood as it grows.So breathing does not increase or decrease the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Why is it important for the earth to have some carbon dioxide in its atmosphere?
The natural greenhouse effect (helped by carbon dioxide) keeps the earth warm.The enhanced (or accelerated) greenhouse effect (from too much carbon dioxide) is causing global warming.
Will planting trees improve carbon dioxide levels?
In the short term, yes. As the trees grow, they sequester carbon from the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by turning it into wood. However, when the tree dies and decays or burns, much of that carbon returns to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.
What would happen to the atmosphere's temperatures if there wasn't any carbon dioxide?
The atmosphere would be slightly cooler than it is now if there were no carbon dioxide in it. Carbon dioxide is just one of several so-called "greenhouse gasses". It is second in importance to water vapor, a very distant second. So, if all the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere suddenly disappeared, it would not affect temperatures very much. What you have to worry about is the effect on plant life. Plants cannot survive without carbon dioxide. No trees, no crops. Fortunately, it's just not possible to deplete all of the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Even over the long term. There are plenty of sources for carbon dioxide, including the burning of fossil fuels and respiration of animal life. And if that all ran out, then you have about a hundred times as much CO2 stored in the oceans as there is in the atmosphere, and that would go back into the atmosphere rather quickly.
Which processes in the carbon cycle decreases the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere?
Photosynthesis is the main process in the carbon cycle that decreases the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. During photosynthesis, plants take in carbon dioxide from the air and convert it into carbohydrates and oxygen. This helps to store carbon and reduce the overall concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
How the presence of the carbon dioxide in Venus' atmosphere causes the average surface temp of Venus to be higher than the average surface temp on Mercury?
Carbon dioxide is what is colloquially known as a greenhouse gas. This means that while it is transparent to the incoming sunlight in the visible spectrum, it is opaque to the infrared frequencies by which a planet loses heat at night. So an atmosphere with carbon dioxide in it is like a warm blanket, wrapped around a planet, keeping in the heat. Earth has only about a third of one percent carbon dioxide in its atmosphere, so the greenhouse effect is not that strong. Venus, on the other hand, has a much higher concentration of carbon dioxide, and a much stronger greenhouse effect.
Will the amount carbon dioxide the atmosphere soon be greater than the Amount of oxygen?
No, the amount of oxygen in the atmosphere is much greater than the amount of carbon dioxide. The current levels of carbon dioxide are approximately 0.04% of the atmosphere, while oxygen levels are around 21%.
Does Mars have any known atmosphere?
Yes, Mars has a thin atmosphere composed mostly of carbon dioxide, with trace amounts of nitrogen and argon. The atmosphere is much less dense than Earth's and does not provide significant protection from solar radiation or help retain heat.
What planet's atmosphere is most carbon dioxide?
There are two such planets, Mars and Venus. Venus has a much thicker atmosphere than Mars, but both atmospheres are about 95% carbon dioxide.
