How do greenhouse gases cause the greenhouse effect?

Question

Olivia Akins · Accepted Answer

Greenhouse gases cause the greenhouse effect by trapping heat.

Greenhouse gases work the same as the windows of a greenhouse. They allow sunlight in but prevent the heat generated by that sunlight from escaping.

The atmosphere naturally lets some sunlight through and reflects some sunlight. (If we didn't have an atmosphere, our planet would be much, much cooler.)

As water vapor, CO2, and other greenhouse gases (GHGs) increase, they trap more and more sunlight or energy. Energy that would normally escape from earth cannot, and the planet warms.

To learn in detail how greenhouse gases trap heat, see this question.

NASA also has a webpage designed specifically for kids that can be found here.

Emilia Alcaraz · Answer

The same way a greenhouse works. Sunlight comes in through the windows but the heat generated by that sunlight is blocked by those windows. In this cause the windows are greenhouse gases.

I'll provide a link to the procedure because the response to this question is essentially the same as the responses to other questions that are similar. What is the mechanism by which greenhouse gases trap heat?

Peyton Budinger · Answer

undefined Greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, methane, and water vapor, trap heat in the Earth's atmosphere by absorbing and re-emitting infrared radiation emitted by the Earth's surface. This process, known as the greenhouse effect, leads to an increase in the overall temperature of the Earth's atmosphere and surface.