Greenhouse Gases

Greenhouse gases help to regulate the earth′s temperature and climate. By allowing the sun′s energy to pass through the atmosphere, greenhouse gases allow solar radiation to warm the earth′s surface. Greenhouse gases also help to regulate the return of heat to space, mitigating temperature fluctuations and providing comfortable, stable temperatures for life on earth.

While water vapor is the most significant greenhouse gas accounting for 36%-66% of the global greenhouse effect, anthropogenic greenhouse gases, or greenhouse gases occurring as the result of human activity, are widely studied for their influence on climate change. The greenhouse gases carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide account for 72%, 18%, and 9% of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions.

In order to quantify the effect of greenhouse gases on the environment, each gas is given a multiplier known as its Global Warming Potential (GWP). Because carbon dioxide is the most abundant greenhouse gas, its GWP is 1. The Global Warming Potential of all other greenhouse gases can be converted into a carbon dioxide equivalent value by multiplying its quantity by its GWP.