30*C : The Future Winters?

submitted by: Karan Saggi

Ever wondered why summers are getting longer than winters? Why each year we face even hotter summers? Why snow falls as late as in february rather than during christmas? These trivial signs of Climate Change all lead us to one answer- Global Warming. Global Warming is a phenomenon which basically leads to a rise in the temperature of earth`s atmosphere, disturbing all life-forms on earth.

Global warming has innumerable causes, most of which are due to our activities. Mainly, they are deforestation and uncontrolled emission of carbon dioxide. Global warming started long ago and is happening everyday because of us. It may be by superficial activities like use of perfumes or by an epochal period like that of the industrial revolution. The scientific explanation of Global Warming says that gases like carbon dioxide and methane ( called the `greenhouse gases`) have the ability to trap solar heat near earth`s surface. When these gases are present in the atmosphere in excess, which they are today, they do not reflect the trapped heat back into space and thereby increase the temperature of our planet. Even the tiny dust particles in air have this ability to trap heat!

It is said that a storm is preceded by an ominous silence. If Global warming is the storm, then today is the its silent phase. Global warming is inimical to all living forms on earth. We may not be affected by it today but studies have shown that since 1970, temperatures have gone up at nearly three times the average for the 20th century! The on-going effects of climate change include melting of ice caps and increase in sea levels. It means that by 2100, sea levels are likely to rise between 7 to 23 inches and a monstrous flood only requires 4 inches rise in water levels.

It is our call to prevent climate change and save our planet. It is in our hands to change our attitude towards our earth. We shouldn't contribute to spoil the climate of our planet neither do we have the right to do so. So the next time you travel, prefer a CNG vehicle or the next time you buy a deodorant, prefer the one with no CFC (usually mentioned at the back of the bottle). Or the next time your car is at a stop at the traffic light, turn off the engine. It is every individual`s responsibility to preserve planet earth. As it is said, "We didn't inherit the earth from our fathers, but we have borrowed it from our children."