The Greenhouse Effect

THE GREENHOUSE EFFECT

The greenhouse effect: retention of heat in the Earth's atmosphere due to the presence of greenhouse gases. In this essay, I will tell you how the greenhouse effect works and the importance it has in our atmosphere and everyday life.

The greenhouse effect is the rise in temperature that the Earth experiences because certain gases in the atmosphere (water vapor, carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane) trap energy from the sun. Without these certain gases, the heat would escape back into space, causing the Earth's average temperature to be somewhere around 60oF colder.

Most greenhouses look like small glass houses. Greenhouses are used to grow plants, especially in the winter. Greenhouses operate by trapping the heat from the sun. The glass panels of the greenhouse let in light but keep the heat from escaping into the atmosphere. This causes the greenhouse to heat up and keep the plants warm enough to live during the winter season.

The Earth's atmosphere is everywhere around us, it is the air we breathe. The greenhouse gases in the atmosphere