The Burning Planet

1.2…

This is how much the average global temperature has risen (in celcius) since the 1850s. 

The 1850s was the time in history when coal and fossil fuels were first popularized and became a very effective way of creating energy. We all know. Heat the water, air created in the boiling of the water would shoot up into a chamber at a high speed, in which would spin a turbine to create energy. But the carbon dioxide created from these burners had to go somewhere. And so millions of pounds of carbon dioxide were released into the sky. The invention of the car in the 1880s didn’t make it any better.

CO2 Levels from 1000-2020

Notice how the CO2 Levels increase exponentially since the start of the late 1700s.

The first report on a potential long-term problem they called “global warming” ,was released in 1896 by Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius. But it wasn’t until 1957 that the first announcement was made. This was because a group of scientists discovered that the average global temperature across all 12 months of the year has increased nearly .45 of a celsius since 1850 (or just around 0.8 F).

This may not seem like a huge difference but even with such a minor temperature increase can come huge consequences. Places on Earth that sit just below freezing, allowing ice to form and glaciers to live will slowly dwindle as overtime the ice will very slowly melt because it is no longer 0 degrees. But it doesn't matter to those who aren't really affected by this. And so nothing came into play. And now we are here, 2022, the decade of reckoning.

Shows how much the average global temperature increased each year compared to the temperature recorded in 1969.

We no longer run away from this problem. In the past 100 years the global temperature has risen 1.1 degrees Celsius (1.9 F), chances of forest fires in multiple countries and states have drastically increased, and dry heat waves and droughts are now something we have to live with. We can’t not deal with global warming, for it is an issue we are now FORCED to deal with. But even now, when lakes are drying up and wells are running low, we still turn away. Meteorologists have predicted that in 2050, only 28 years from now, global temperatures will rise to a 1.5 - 2.0 C increase (2.7 - 3.6 F) and global warming will be irreversible.

This all is pretty bad… But here are some ways you can help.

1 - Limit electricity. By turning off lights in rooms you aren’t using can help limit electricity use. In turn, there is less demand for electricity and therefore will lead to less coal burners burning coal as there is no need to produce more electricity if people are not using much of it.

A visual of what some of the US states mostly use for energy sources:
Lighter Blue-Wind | Light Blue-Hydro | Navy Blue-Coal | Pink-Natural Gas | Dark Red-Oil | Green-Biomass | Dark Green-Nuclear | Yellow-Solar

2 - Don’t be dumb. Obviously most people aren’t dumb, but some people tend to do dumb things. For starters, don’t burn or encourage the burning of woods or grasses for fun. Some people love to create fires with sticks just for a little excitement, but by stopping this you are also stopping more carbon dioxide from going into the air.

3 - Don’t use heaters. Using heating systems and cooling systems are both bad for the environment, as they both consume LARGE amounts of energy. As a heating system that is left on 2 hours can possibly use anywhere from 100 - 200MJ of power, this produces roughly 3-6 kg of CO2. But in a time like this, it’s hard to say no to a cooling system. So I’ll just say this about heating. Instead of using heaters to heat up your house on a cold day, think about using a comfy sweater or heavy blanket instead. If many people were to just do this, it is sure to drive down the demand for electricity.

An image explaining how many grams of CO2 is produced in equivalence to every kilowatt-hour of heat.

he light red ranges are the minimum and dark red being maximum, according to their data.

4 - Limiting irrigation. For those with huge lawns or gardens to tend to, by lowering how often you water your garden can help out as a decrease in the frequent use of large irrigation systems can reduce energy use and also just help out droughts as more water can be put to helping those who need it. Now I’m not saying to leave your plants dead with no water, but rather just don’t water them more than they need. Also covering your plants with a sheet  or taking smaller ones inside can help reduce how much water they need compared to being outside in the sun.

It doesn’t have to be like this however. It can be as simple as a makeshift tent made out of sticks. As long as it covers your plants. But make sure that your plants can still get some sunlight through these.

5 - Encourage others. By sharing this article to others and encouraging them to help will also aid in the reconstruction of our atmosphere.

Astron Analytics Document : The Burning Planet

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