The ongoing climate change crisis isn’t easy to forget, but NASA is here to make sure the dangerous effects of the issue are seared into our brains thanks to a new animation that shows how carbon dioxide continues to fill up the atmosphere as the most prevalent greenhouse gas emitted. The result is a well-documented look at just how carbon dioxide is choking our planet throughout the year.
Greenhouse gases are often considered dangerous gases that help raise the global temperature by insulating our planet and holding in more heat. Essentially, heavy concentrations of gases like carbon dioxide and others act as a blanket around our planet. The tricky thing about carbon dioxide, though, is that we also need it to survive, as do many plants.
As such, visualizations like this are often thrown to the side by people who don’t believe in climate change, with the argument that we need carbon dioxide to survive. However, the mass amounts of carbon dioxide being released into our atmosphere are dangerous. If we put too much of this gas into the atmosphere, it will undoubtedly lead to warmer global temperatures.
Of course, warmer global temperatures lead to a greater chance of ice shelves melting, raising the sea level by immense amounts and literally sinking parts of our planet beneath the sea. It really is a bit of a domino effect, and this new animation showcasing how carbon dioxide levels are choking our world will help experts discern exactly where the emissions are coming from so that we can find ways to cut down on them as needed.
It’s also important to understand how our planet, and the various plants that help soak up that carbon dioxide, deal with those levels of CO2 in the air. Ultimately, these kinds of NASA animations can be terrifying, but they’re also extremely informative and help scientists come up with new solutions on how to manage the growing problems that face our planet and our population.
