Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Montzka, S. A.
• Dlugokencky, E. J.
• Butler, J. H.

Titel

Non-CO2 greenhouse gases and climate change

Ist Teil von

• Nature (London), 2011-08, Vol.476 (7358), p.43-50

Ort / Verlag

London: Nature Publishing Group UK

Erscheinungsjahr

2011

Quelle

EBSCOhost Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• The other greenhouse gases The influence of anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions on climate is widely recognized, but there are plenty of greenhouse gases besides CO 2 and they receive much less attention. In this Review, Stephen Montzka and co-authors summarize the current knowledge on non-CO 2 greenhouse gases, including methane, nitrous oxide and halogenic compounds such as chlorofluorocarbons. Although the total warming effect of these gases is less than that of CO 2 , a substantial reduction in their emissions would measurably reduce the impact of human activity on our climate. And as non-CO 2 greenhouse gases tend to have a shorter atmospheric lifetime than CO 2 , the response of the climate system to emissions cuts in the former would be faster than the response through cuts in CO 2 alone. Earth’s climate is warming as a result of anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases, particularly carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) from fossil fuel combustion. Anthropogenic emissions of non-CO 2 greenhouse gases, such as methane, nitrous oxide and ozone-depleting substances (largely from sources other than fossil fuels), also contribute significantly to warming. Some non-CO 2 greenhouse gases have much shorter lifetimes than CO 2 , so reducing their emissions offers an additional opportunity to lessen future climate change. Although it is clear that sustainably reducing the warming influence of greenhouse gases will be possible only with substantial cuts in emissions of CO 2 , reducing non-CO 2 greenhouse gas emissions would be a relatively quick way of contributing to this goal.