		Compare opinions of experts, leaders and organizations.
		Questions Experts Discussions How It Works Send Feedback Sign Up Login

Does atmospheric CO2 cause significant global warming?

Topics: Global Warming Science Climatology

Background

CO2 is a greenhouse gas, which means it traps sunlight in earth's atmosphere, like glass traps heat in a greenhouse. While it may seem obvious that increasing the level of CO2 in the atmosphere would increase the temperature of the atmosphere, earth's atmosphere is a far more complex system than a greenhouse. The IPCC uses sophisticated Global Climate Models to predict that an increase in CO2 will result in global warming.

Implications

Expert Opinions

What's Your TakeOnIt?

Agree

Quote

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

IPCC, Scientific Body formed by U.N.

It is very likely that glacial-interglacial CO2 variations have strongly amplified climate variations, but it is unlikely that CO2 variations have triggered the end of glacial periods. Antarctic temperature started to rise several centuries before atmospheric CO2 during past glacial terminations.

01 Jan 2008 Source

Disagree

Quote

Geophysics Professor

If you look back far enough, we have a bunch of data that show that warming has gone on from the 1600s with an almost linear increase to the present.

01 Apr 2007 Source

Mostly Disagree

Denis Rancourt

Physics Professor

CO2 increases may accompany temperature increases rather than causing them. Indeed, some high resolution studies have suggested that the temperature increases precede the CO2 increases. Interestingly, also, ice core data shows strong temporal correlations between inferred temp. and amount of dust preserved in the ice core. Finally, the older geological record shows several dramatic examples of where CO2 concentration and global average temperature were either unrelated or even anti-correlated.

27 Feb 2007 Source