Description
The eruption of Tonga's underwater volcano, in January 2022, vaporized 150 million tons of seawater and shot a geyser of super heated steam through the stratosphere. The water vapour, a strong greenhouse gas, may increase global temperatures for at least five years. For the past 800,000 years, atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) was about 290 parts per million (ppm). Many people believe the current atmospheric CO2 concentration of 415 ppm is causing global warming. (While commercial greenhouses use 1000 to 1500 ppm of CO2 to optimize plant growth). But . . . there is no correlation between temperature and atmospheric CO2 over the past 500 million years, so CO2 does not appear to directly affect the temperature. And . . . the automatic thermostatic effect of a small increase in cloud cover could offset the effect of greenhouse gases by reflecting more solar radiation back into space. Between 717 and 635 million years ago, the Earth was probably covered in ice and snow. However, between 56 and 34 million years ago the average temperature near the poles was 25°C warmer than it is today. The Little Ice Age devastated harvests in Europe from 1300 to 1850 CE, causing starvation and sickness. Wood was expensive so, in London, England, people began burning coal despite the smoke and dirt. But . . . almost everyone on the planet is five times wealthier than their ancestors. In the past 70 years, the average life span increased from about 40 years to more than 80 and the average world income grew from less than $3 to more than $33 per person per day. This explosive growth in productivity (largely as a result of fossil fuels) was responsible for astonishing improvements in health, education, and longevity. Eliminating fossil fuels will cause massive declines in productivity but the average person is still expected to be four times richer by 2100 CE despite disruptions. Read WEALTH at https://www.wattpad.com/user/duncmacphun
Part 1 - Witches
