I know this is a stupid question about global warming, but if it could be explained?

Question

To my understanding the theory of global warming is that humans pump chemicals into the air (mostly CO2 and ozone O3) which reflect sunrays back to the Earth, thus heating it up.

Sounds basic. But if the chemicals can block the sun's rays back to Earth, why didn't they block the sun's rays on the way in before they got to the Earth?

Sun rays come down, some warm up the Earth and others reflect back out to space, and some are blocked by the chemical "shield."

But shouldn't it be sun's rays try to get through, and are reflected back out to space before they can ever reach Earth?

Can anyone explain why the sun's rays aren't blocked out beforehand?

Answer 1

d  thing is , d earth gets warm at day n cooler at night. so there is a balance of heat. but on earth, the more trees r being cut n so less oxygen is released in d air.n mre houses n industries r being built. so heat is more trapped than b4.  so everyday the earth is consuming more heat but can't release d same amount. so additionally d earth is getting hotter n d most harmed r those who stay beside the sea.  the more d earth gets hotter, the more it sinks in the bay area.

but ultimately the earth is getting hotter additionally each year.

Answer 2

I find it amazing that Alarmists have never set outside when a dense cloud passed over and blocked a large portion of heat!?!?  

Maybe they never get outside because they're reading about Global Warming  from only one viewpoint.  They admit by their denunciations that they will NEVER view/listen to Fox or Rush.

Answer 3

It's not a stupid question. Whether or not the light is reflected back into space or back to the surface of the Earth depends on how high the interaction takes place. At very high altitudes, it's reflected out before it enters the atmosphere. At lower altitude it's more likely to be bounced back to the Earth's surface.

Think of it this way - if it's a cloud then it will tend to cause more cooling than heating of the surface. Which is why a new theory about cloud formation and our solar cycle (sunspots) is a better explanation for the warming we've observed than CO2. We're constantly hit by radiation in the form of gamma rays from outside our solar system, but usually the solar wind from the sun sweeps most of these rays away before they pass thru the Earth. This theory holds that during periods with few sunspots more gamma rays pass thru and they interact with water vapor in the atmosphere and form clouds. This is a slight simplification, if you want to read the theory follow the link below. This causes the Earth to cool and it dovetails nicely with temp records, better than CO2 levels match temp.

From 1940 to 1970 CO2 skyrocketed, yet temps declined. This was a period of low sunspot activity matching this theory but not the theory of CO2 caused warming. The sunspot cycle we're now in has been very inactive so far, beginning late and even now it's barely been observable. If that trend continues we may be talking about a mini ice age next year, not global warming.

Answer 4

The deal is that different molecules absorb light at different wavelengths.  Greenhouse gases are molecules that absorb light at infrared wavelengths.

Most of the light from the sun is emitted at UV and visible parts of the spectrum (we wear sunblock to protect from UV light, and we can see visible light).  Greenhouse gases are transparent at these wavelengths, so the light passes thru.

Then the light hits the surface of the Earth and is absorbed.  The Earth then re-radiates most of the light as heat (infrared light).  Infrared wavelengths are where greenhouse gases absorb light, so they absorb much of this heat.  Then the molecules re-radiate it in all directions, and some of it goes back down to the Earth, heating it up.

Because the greenhouse gases are basically trapping heat, that's why it's called the 'greenhouse effect', and why they warm the planet.   A helpful diagram is available here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Atmos...

And further explanation here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenhouse_...

Answer 5

I think u r wrong not sun rays Infra red rays which hav largest wavelenght(still there r many, which r sent back)....&since ozone is a gas & there is som space so all can't b reflected!

& sun ray cannot b blocked completely ... if it happens no living being ,no plants , sunligth gives ,coz for rainfall...............

So .........did u got   correct exp for u r question!

goodluck!

Answer 6

It's not a block.  Light loses energy passing through a transparent or semitransparent medium.  (picture two panes of glass compared to one). Sometimes the loss of energy is enough that it doesn't have enough to pass through a second time.  Adding pollutants to the atmosphere is like adding panes of glass.  More of the sun's energy is retained, and things get hotter.  A block would be something opaque (not transparent), where ALL the energy is lost, and nothing passes through.

Answer 7

they dont block sunlight they sort of trap it.

the sunlight that hits the earth is many wavelengths of light. just as most music is made up of many different sound waves.

greenhouse gasses prevent some of these wavelengths but most get through and heat the earth. sort of like a tuning fork absorbs sound waves to vibrate but it only absorbs sounds of a specific frequency.

the earth emits mostly infra red radiation and its the only way the earth can lose heat. this radiation is what is absorbed by the greenhouse gasses.

Answer 8

thare was a thery in the past about this ''global dimming'' the theory was that the carbon atoms from burnt fuel reflected the suns rays....and the reson the rays dont get reflected of the earth is becouse light rays are much stronger befor they enter our atmospheir and so can break through this layer of greenhouse gasses but not all the light is reflected back at earh only about 30-40% but this is still enugh to cause some heat tempretures to rise globaly.

Answer 9

The Sun's energy comes to Earth in many wavelengths of light. This energy is then absorbed by the surface of the Earth and then released as heat. CO2 acts as an insulator, keeping the heat in.

It's just like the glass windows in your car. The light goes in, gets absorbed by your dashboard, seats, etc, and then traps the heat inside. This is what those shiny panels people put on in their windows are for. If we had a huge one of those we could stop global warming instantly, but we'd all freeze and starve to death.