Global Warming Effects
Green house gases stay can stay in the atmosphere for an amount of years
ranging from decades to hundreds and thousands of years. No matter what we do,
global warming is going to have some effect on Earth. Here are the 5 deadliest
effects of global warming.
1. Spread of disease
As northern countries warm, disease carrying insects migrate north, bringing
plague and disease with them. Indeed some scientists believe that in some
countries thanks to global warming, malaria has not been fully eradicated.
2. Warmer waters and more hurricanes
As the temperature of oceans rises, so will the probability of more frequent
and stronger hurricanes. We saw in this in 2004 and 2005.
3. Increased probability and intensity of droughts and heat waves
Although some areas of Earth will become wetter due to global warming, other
areas will suffer serious droughts and heat waves. Africa will receive the
worst of it, with more severe droughts also expected in Europe. Water is
already a dangerously rare commodity in Africa, and according to the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, global warming will exacerbate the
conditions and could lead to conflicts and war.
4. Economic consequences
Most of the effects of anthropogenic global warming won’t be good. And these
effects spell one thing for the countries of the world: economic consequences.
Hurricanes cause do billions of dollars in damage, diseases cost money to
treat and control and conflicts exacerbate all of these.
5. Polar ice caps melting
The ice caps melting is a four-pronged danger.
First, it will raise sea levels. There are 5,773,000 cubic
miles of water in ice caps, glaciers, and permanent snow. According to the
National Snow and Ice Data Center, if all glaciers melted today the seas would
rise about 230 feet. Luckily, that’s not going to happen all in one go! But
sea levels will rise.
Second, melting ice caps will throw the global ecosystem
out of balance. The ice caps are fresh water, and when they melt they will
desalinate the ocean, or in plain English – make it less salty. The
desalinization of the gulf current will “screw up” ocean currents, which
regulate temperatures. The stream shutdown or irregularity would cool the area
around north-east America and Western Europe. Luckily, that will slow some of
the other effects of global warming in that area!
Third, temperature rises and changing landscapes in the
artic circle will endanger several species of animals. Only the most adaptable
will survive.
Fourth, global warming could snowball with the ice caps
gone. Ice caps are white, and reflect sunlight, much of which is relected back
into space, further cooling Earth. If the ice caps melt, the only reflector is
the ocean. Darker colors absorb sunlight, further warming the Earth.
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