We explain what climate change is and what the causes of this phenomenon are. Its effects, consequences and possible solutions.
What is climate change?
We call climate change the variation of stable weather patterns over an extended period of time which can range from a few decades to millions of years. It is usually accompanied by climatic readjustment processes that often involve extreme meteorological phenomena, which can have a high impact on the ways of life of flora, fauna and humanity.
Climate is the set of environmental conditions of a given place, and is characterized by being the average of the weather, calculated through observations made over a long period (between 10 and 30 years).
The geological exploration of different terrains on our planet has revealed to us that its climatic conditions in previous times were quite different from those of today: for example, Areas that today are considered deserts were under water and others that are currently lush meadows were deserted. These evidences have confirmed the fact that climate is not a fixed instance, but rather varies over time. In addition, scientists have been able to determine the factors that accelerate this change.
In recent times, the term “climate change” has gained currency to also refer to the impact of human activities on the chemical and physical balance of the planet which would have had an impact on global warming (due, among other factors, to the “greenhouse effect” produced by the abnormal accumulation of certain gases in the atmosphere) and, indirectly, on the change in the Earth's climatic conditions.
The debate on climate change is constant: There are sectors that sound the alarm of imminent climate disasters to come (some of which would have already been perceived: longer than normal hurricane seasons, earthquakes, unforeseen floods and droughts, etc.), accusing the hand of man and the industry as directly responsible for the rise in planetary temperature.
Other sectors, however, believe that the real impact of humanity is minimal in terms of planetary history and that in reality we are simply witnesses of an ice age that is coming to an end, so that global warming and climate change are part of a natural stage in the planet's meteorological process. According to these same sectors, it is not true that it is imperative to implement a radical change in humanity's ways of life and energy production.
The causes of climate change can be classified into two groups, according to their origin, external and internal.
See also: Greenhouse effect
External causes of climate change
External causes are those that come from outside planet Earth, such as:
- Solar variations Changes in heat and energy emissions from the Sun, according to its stellar cycles (11 years).
- Orbital variations The Earth's orbit presents very slight variations that, accumulated over time, alter the distribution of solar radiation on its surface, thus allowing the appearance or end of ice ages and interglacials.
- Meteorites The impact of massive objects from space against the Earth is powerful enough to alter the climate, raising large amounts of dust, ash and greenhouse gases (GHG) into the atmosphere, thus potentially blocking access to sunlight for years ( an artificial glaciation) or destroy the atmosphere and allow its direct entry.
Internal causes of climate change
Internal causes are those that are due to factors within planet Earth, such as:
- Continental drift The movement of tectonic plates on the planet alters the position of the continents and brings about climatic changes in them.
- The atmospheric composition The presence of gases that destroy the ozone layer (allowing direct solar entry) or that prevent the removal of heat from the atmosphere (greenhouse effect) affect global warming.
- Human intervention According to some specialists, human industrial activity a century and a half ago would have released enough polluting gases into the atmosphere and waters to accelerate the process of global warming.
Effects and consequences of climate change
Climate changes incident in life directly since life adapts to its environment and varies along with the climate, gradually.
Drastic and immediate changes are the most worrying: the imbalance in temperatures and atmospheric pressures can generate many violent and destructive weather phenomena such as cyclones, hurricanes, storms, or prolonged droughts.
Another worrying phenomenon is the melting of the poles and the planet's ice reserves whose content would add to the water of the oceans and eventually submerge a significant portion of the land, destroying entire cities.
Does climate change have a solution?
Some measures that man can take in relation to climate change are:
- Reducing the burning of fossil fuels that release CO2to the atmosphere, and its replacement by clean alternative energies (called “green energies”).
- The development of sustainable alternatives for obtaining energy (such as solar, wind, geothermal energy).
- The development of sustainable agricultural patterns, which do not involve the accumulation of large quantities of cattle (and the methane from their emissions, the main gas that causes the greenhouse effect).