How does the greenhouse effect act as a warm blanket around earth?
The greenhouse effect acts as a warm blanket around the Earth by trapping heat in the atmosphere and preventing it from escaping into space. It does so by primarily using greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and water vapor.
These greenhouse gases are naturally present in the Earth's atmosphere and act as insulators. They allow sunlight to pass through the atmosphere and reach the Earth's surface. When this sunlight hits the Earth's surface, it is absorbed and re-emitted as infrared radiation, also known as heat.
Normally, a significant portion of the re-emitted heat would escape back into space. However, greenhouse gases in the atmosphere trap some of this heat, preventing it from being lost. This is similar to how a blanket traps and retains body heat to keep a person warm.
As the concentration of greenhouse gases increases due to human activities, such as burning fossil fuels and deforestation, the greenhouse effect becomes stronger, resulting in more heat being trapped in the atmosphere. This leads to an overall increase in global temperatures, known as global warming.