Greenhouse gases are atmospheric constituents that absorb and emit infrared radiation, thereby contributing to the greenhouse effect and Earth’s radiative energy balance. Major greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), nitrous oxide (N₂O), ozone (O₃), and various halogenated compounds, along with water vapour (H₂O) as a feedback agent. Their radiative forcing depends on concentration, spectral absorption properties, atmospheric lifetime, and overlap with other absorbers. In climate research, greenhouse gases are quantified via metrics such as global warming potential and effective radiative forcing to assess their contribution to anthropogenic climate change and to inform emissions mitigation strategies.
Methane is a potent greenhouse gas with a much stronger short-term effect on warming than carbon dioxide. Over the near-term (20 years), 1 ton of methane has the warming effect of up to 84 tons of carbon dioxide, while over ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 30, 2025
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President Donald Trump's administration on Tuesday moved to reverse a foundational scientific determination that underpins the US government's authority to limit greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles and, more broadly, ...
Environment
Jul 29, 2025
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Since March 2022, the global community has been negotiating a global plastics treaty within the framework of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)—but no agreement has been reached so far. From 5 to 14 August, the ...
Environment
Jul 29, 2025
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The findings are important because methane is over 25 times more powerful than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas. Arctic lakes are already major natural methane sources globally, but the processes that control how methane ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 28, 2025
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The United Nations' International Court of Justice issued a striking opinion this week that opened the door for countries to potentially sue each other over the impacts of climate change and historically generated greenhouse ...
Environment
Jul 28, 2025
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President Donald Trump's administration is preparing to upend a foundational scientific determination about the harms of greenhouse gases that underpins the US government's ability to curb climate change.
Environment
Jul 25, 2025
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Low carbon fuel policies are intended to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from transportation. However, rigid carbon intensity (CI) accounting procedures in current policies may limit CI responsiveness across candidate ...
Environment
Jul 23, 2025
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The Trump administration is decreasing the attention federal regulators pay to pipeline leaks. But leaks from natural gas pipelines don't just waste energy and warm the planet—they can also make the air more dangerous to ...
Environment
Jul 22, 2025
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The United States was the world's largest source of carbon emissions for more than a century. In a new analysis, researchers document the changing trends in U.S. carbon emissions from the late 19th century to the early 21st ...
Environment
Jul 21, 2025
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Heat waves are becoming more frequent around the world. And while rising temperatures caused by greenhouse gas emissions are part of the problem, the declining levels of aerosols—the small particles that make up smog and ...
Environment
Jul 16, 2025
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