What Causes Global Warming?

There are many scientists who are studying the issue of global warming and they feel that global warming is caused by two factors; human activity and natural cycles humans have no control over. Global warming is defined as "the increase of Earth's average surface temperature due to the effect of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, which trap heat that would otherwise escape Earth" (Global). So what would be considered man-made activities that cause this to occur? Two activities I plan to research more throughout my blog that are man-made are the cutting down of rainforests, deforestation, and the burning of fossil fuels for human consumption. On the other hand I also plan to research on activities that cause global warming that naturally occur on Earth. Some examples of them would be that for over the past five million years the Earth has naturally gone through cycles of global warming and cooling. This process is due to a cycle referred to as the Milankovitch cycle which depends on how close the earth is to the sun. Another naturally occurring cycle I will research on is due to the positions of the continents. Their position determines the geometry of the oceans which influence ocean circulation; therefore, if plate tectonics are to shift it can affect both global and local patterns of climate and ocean circulation. In my next few blogs I will spend time researching these activities and finding out how they affect global warming. In the last few years we have had odd weather changes such as heat waves in Russia, floods in Australia, and even snow in Texas. These severe changes could be a result and most likely are of global warming.

Refer to sources under links.