Why do greenhouse gases warm the earth?
Molecules, notably water, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrogen oxides

First published February 25, 2016

The earth receives heat from the sun at an incredible rate and, if it didn't get rid of that heat, it would get hotter and hotter until it became like the planet Mercury.

To maintain a steady average temperature, the planet earth must radiate away heat just as fast as it receives that heat from the sun.

In other words, the thermal radiation that the sun emits into empty space must be equal to the thermal radiation the earth receives from the sun.

Though they're equal in amount, these two thermal radiations have quite different spectrums.

Because the sun is extremely hot, its thermal radiation spectrum is largely visible light.

The earth, on the other hand, is relatively cool and its thermal radiation spectrum is almost entirely invisible infrared light.

While the sun's thermal radiation is brilliantly visible, we can't see the earth's thermal glow or where it's coming from, which is important because some of it comes from our atmosphere.

If the earth had no atmosphere, its average surface temperature would be approximately -18 °C.

At that temperature, the earth's surface would emit just enough thermal radiation to balance the thermal radiation it receives from the sun.

If the earth were hotter, it would radiate away more heat than it receives and cool down.

If the earth were cooler, it would radiate away less heat than it receives and warm up.



But the earth does have an atmosphere and that atmosphere contributes to these exchanges of thermal radiation.

Although it's relatively transparent to visible light, the atmosphere is able to emit and absorb significant portions of the infrared spectrum.

As a result, a substantial fraction of the earth's thermal radiation originates in its atmosphere.

Because of the atmosphere's contribution to the earth's thermal radiation, the average altitude at which the earth's thermal radiation originates is not ground level. Instead, it's 5 kilometers above sea level, the altitude at which the air temperature is about -1. So the earth's atmosphere shifts the -18 °C average radiating surface from sea level to an altitude of 5 kilometers above sea level.



If you've ever traveled up into the mountains and felt the air during your trip, you've probably noticed that air's temperature decreases with altitude.

The earth's atmosphere has a natural temperature gradient of about -6.6 °C per kilometer upward.

A simple explanation for that temperature gradient is that at higher altitudes, air must commit more of its overall energy to gravitational potential energy (energy stored in the force of gravity), leaving it with less for thermal energy (energy associated with temperature).

Since the air temperature increases by 6.6 °C each time you descend 1 kilometer, the air temperature at an altitude of 4 kilometers is -11.4°C (-18 °C + 6.6 °C), at an altitude of 3 kilometers is -4.8 °C (-11.4 + 6.6 °C), ..., and at sea level is 15 °C.

Sure enough, the average historical air temperature at sea level is about 15 °C.

Which brings us to the question itself: "Why do greenhouse gases warm the earth?"

The 5 kilometer average altitude of origin for the earth's thermal radiation actually depends on the atmosphere's chemical composition.

Some molecules in the air, notably nitrogen and oxygen, are remarkably transparent in the infrared and barely contribute to the earth's thermal radiation.

Other molecules, notably water, carbon dioxide CO², methane, and nitrogen oxides, interact strongly with infrared light and contribute significantly to the earth's thermal radiation.

Those thermally radiating gases are collectively known as "greenhouse gases."


The higher the concentration of those greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the more the atmosphere contributes to the earth's thermal radiation and the higher the average altitude of origin for the earth's thermal radiation.

As human-produced greenhouse gases accumulate in the earth's atmosphere, the average altitude of origin for the earth's thermal radiation increases.

If that average altitude were to rise from 5 kilometers to 6 kilometers, the average temperature at sea level would increase by another 6.6 °C to 21.6 °C. A rise of that magnitude would be catastrophic or even apocalyptic.

Alas, the average altitude of origin for the earth's thermal radiation has already risen significantly since the industrial revolution and with it, a rise in the average temperature at sea level.

The rate of temperature rise is alarming and the task of halting it or at least slowing it substantially cannot be put off for another generation.

Even with serious international effort, it's likely that many areas of the world will become uninhabitable by the next century, either because they are too hot for human survival or because they are under water.

Humanity, if you like your lives then get focused at the above words of this page from a government beaurough of what is happening to your "HOME" World planet Earth. You all are in this very closed 'room' with no exit that would maintain your life. You are unquestionably unconditionally stuck in this 'room planet Earth'. You all can now immediately join in with TPEOM and make its scientific physics technology save this Home by or before the year 2040, preferably much before that date.

It is now as these words are composed and written the time line of 00:25:00 of 01-25-2019. From this time line to 2045 is only 26 years To return this planets environment // ecology back to the time before the industrial revolution must have rationally adequate time for 5 Billion active members of TPEOM to go outside into the global environments as a team of ten with ten TPEOM Environmental converters and get with it into each continent of land & begin a pre mapped grid by grid sector and complete the removal of the multi megatons of waste / rubbish strewn into those grid sector environments until they are pure again.

We absolutely MUST be ready and begin this recovery by no later than 2025.

Then the global time line to recovery reduces to an intense 20 years and no more time available.

We either intently win at this or we die trying to make a betterment best of what humanity nonconcientiously did to this planet our home world.

For you to join in with TPEOM & this cause is conveniently easy at this website.
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Prof. Dr. Yoshida, Mike Kazuo PhD. Prof, BA, Bsc, MBA, MD GP, CNC.
Environmental Science Physicist
TPEOM
The Pyran Environmental Organization Malaysia.
http://www.tgmncsb.com/The Pyran organization.html
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205A Jalan Pasir Puteh,
Ipoh Darul Ridzuan, Perak, Malaysia
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DUNS # 659308259
DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.14518.63044 >Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Mike-Yoshida
This paper considered and texted by Dr. Prof. Yoshida PhD. Prof, BA, Bsc, MBA, MD GP, CNC.

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