气候变暖与温室效应的影响因素.doc

Global Warming and Rising Sea Levels The 20th century saw（“看到了”之意 拟人化的用法） the greatest increase in temperature of any century during the last thousand years, and the 1990s was the warmest decade since records began. As the temperature rises, so does the sea level – with profound consequences（具有深远的影响） for us all.（with profound consequences for sb 对某人影响很大） The average air temperature at the surface of the earth has risen this century, as has the temperature of ocean surface waters. Because water expands as it heats, a warmer ocean means higher sea levels. We cannot say definitely（一定地） that the temperature rises are due to（由于） the greenhouse effect, which is a phenomenon created by the heat energy radiated(辐射 发散) by the sun and greenhouse gases normally present（出现） in the atmosphere. In simple terms（简而言之）, sunlight passes through the atmosphere, warming（ing形式做状语） the Earth. In turn, the Earth radiates(辐射 发散) this energy back towards space. As it passes through the atmosphere, greenhouse gases (water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane（甲烷） and nitrous oxide) absorb part of the energy, while the remainder（剩余物） escapes into space. This means that some of the suns energy becomes trapped（聚集的） – thus making the lower part of the atmosphere, and Earth, warmer. If the atmosphere accumulated all the trapped heat, then the Earths temperature would just rise and rise, but it doesnt. The temperature only rises until the amount of infrared（红外线） or long wave radiation（长波辐射） leaving the Earth balances the amount of energy coming in from the sun. As long as the amount of greenhouse gases in the air stays the same, and as long as the amount of heat arriving from the sun is constant, an equilibrium（平衡） is established. This is a steady state where as much energy is lost to space as is gained from the sun. In equilibrium, the natural greenhouse effect maintains the average temperature of Earth at 16℃. The Earths atmosphere is made up of 78 per cent nitrogen（氮气） and 21 per cent oxygen. Onl