The greenhouse effect is the radiative process by which certain atmospheric gases (notably water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone) absorb and re-emit longwave (infrared) radiation emitted by Earth’s surface and lower atmosphere, thereby reducing the net outgoing longwave flux to space and warming the lower troposphere and surface. It arises from molecular vibrational and rotational absorption bands that are transparent to most incoming shortwave solar radiation but partially opaque to outgoing terrestrial radiation. In climate science, the greenhouse effect is quantified via radiative forcing, feedbacks (e.g., water vapor and cloud feedbacks), and its role in establishing Earth’s energy balance and global mean temperature.
The world is struggling to deal with ever-growing quantities of waste. A new World Bank Group report, What a Waste 3.0, shows that more than 2.6 billion tonnes of municipal solid waste (which includes rubbish from households, ...
Environment
Mar 29, 2026
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The amount of heat trapped by Earth reached record levels in 2025, with the consequences of such warming feared to last for thousands of years, the UN warned Monday.
Environment
Mar 23, 2026
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A burst of unusual March heat is hitting the United States this week and into next, busting previous monthly heat records by wide margins. While heat is most acutely felt by people exposed to it, graphics and charts convey ...
Environment
Mar 21, 2026
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Climate change is one of the most pressing global challenges in the present times. Increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations in the atmosphere are a major factor contributing to this phenomenon. Activities such as the ...
Environment
Mar 17, 2026
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The Miocene, beginning approximately 23 million years ago, represents a canonical "warm-Earth" interval characterized by elevated atmospheric CO2 and a warmer global climate. The El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), as a ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 13, 2026
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Arctic sea ice is headed for one of its smallest winter peaks on record, an AFP review of U.S. data showed Wednesday, as climate change shrinks the region's frozen cover and heightens geopolitical tensions.
Environment
Mar 11, 2026
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Even when the idea of terraforming Mars was originally put forward, the idea was daunting. Changing the environment of an entire planet is not something to do easily. Over the following decades, plenty of scientists and engineers ...
Space Exploration
Mar 9, 2026
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Particles in the atmosphere, known as aerosols, cool the climate by acting as cloud condensation nuclei. The more cloud droplets form around these particles, the less sunlight penetrates a cloud. This cools the climate, although ...
Earth Sciences
Feb 27, 2026
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Researchers have long been puzzled by the observed cooling of the eastern tropical Pacific and the Southern Ocean accompanying global warming. Existing climate models have failed to capture this pattern. At the Max Planck ...
Earth Sciences
Feb 20, 2026
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It's one of the latest technologies for sequestering carbon: crush silicate rocks, add to crop soil, and let the rock dust naturally react with carbon dioxide. The reactions bind carbon into stable mineral forms that can ...
Earth Sciences
Feb 16, 2026
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