Morgan's Memoir

Heading:Environmental Issues

Article1:https://climate.nasa.gov/ 

Article2: https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/pollution/ 

Article3: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/03/climate/hurricane-dorian-climate-change.html 

Recent news of climate change urges society to change their detrimental choices to avoid catastrophic effects. 

The environment has been at a rapid decrease the past two decades. Varying from pollution to climate change, humans are to blame for their own downfall. 

Whether you believe in climate change or not, it is an alarming epidemic. 

An article from NASA.gov concluded “More than 95 percent that human activities the past 50 years have warmed our planet.” They created a panel of 1,300 independent scientific experts from around the world to come to this conclusion. 

To rule out other factors of the rising temperatures, scientists conducted research on Sun activity and energy. NASA.gov article continued, “If the warming were caused by a more active Sun, then scientists would expect to see warmer temperatures in all layers of the atmosphere.” From their research, the inner layers seemed to get warmer while the outer layers cooled. 

Climate change is a direct effect from pollution of humans. Pollution affects not only the land and sea, but the air as well. 

Air pollution is most often invisible, seeming like less of a problem. An article from National Geographic said “Polluted air can be dangerous, even if the pollutants are invisible. It can make people’s eyes burn and make them have difficulty breathing. It can also increase the risk of lung cancer.”

That is just how humans are affected from air pollution. “CFCs damage the ozone layer, a region in Earth’s upper atmosphere. The ozone layer protects Earth by absorbing much of the sun’s harmful ultraviolet radiation.” If the earth is absorbing more Sun, that means heat which is climate change. 

The most recent environmental issue affecting humans now is hurricane Dorian. Humans are a contributing factor to the storm. An article by John Schwartz from the New York Times states “Tropical storms draw their energy from ocean heat — and more than 90 percent of the heat trapped by greenhouse gas emissions is being stored in the ocean. Storms that survive the cradle of formation can intensify quickly and become immensely powerful.” 

These natural disasters like forest fires, hurricanes, and the deteriorating ozone layer are a direct effect from the Carbon Footprint humans leave.