CO2, eh? Well, not exactly. Water vapor is the major cause of global warming (as much as 85%). It outcontributes carbon dioxide 3 fold because of its ability to absorb infrared radiation coming off the earth’s surface. This radiation is then emitted in all directions, one of them being back to the earth.
Inert gases like nitrogen and oxygen that make up much of the atmosphere don’t absorb infrared rays. So the energy bouncing off the earth from the sun passes right through. Water vapor is the culprit, and as carbon emissions have increased exponentially over the last 160 years so too has it impacted water’s ability to trap heat; the global temperature has been climbing ever so steadily.
Ironically it is water’s efficient absorption and emission of energy (in the form of heat or radiation) that gives it its life-giving power. Straight from my secret kitchen laboratory, check out this vid on how rain is made.
