Why is the world warming up? Let's think of Earth for just a moment as a greenhouse. Every second, a huge amount of energy smashes into our greenhouse. Our atmosphere, the glass roof and walls, reflects some of that energy, but most of it passes right through and heats everything up. Much of that heat used to escape back into space, keeping us at a stable, warm temperature.
Zakaj se svet segreva? Za trenutek si zamislimo Zemljo kot toplo gredo. Vsako sekundo ogromna količina energije trči v našo toplo gredo. Naša atmosfera, steklena streha in stene, odbija nekaj energije, a večina prodre skozi in vse se segreva. Veliko toplote se je prej vračalo v vesolje in ohranjala se je stabilna, topla temperatura.
But then something changed. Humans began to spew enough carbon dioxide to fill billions of greenhouses each day. What does all that greenhouse gas do? It makes the glass of our greenhouse thicker. Thicker glass means heat escapes into space much more slowly. And don't forget, energy from the sun is still streaming in just as quickly as before.
A nato se je nekaj spremenilo. Ljudje smo izpuščali za milijarde toplih gred ogljikovega dioksida vsak dan. In kaj počno vsi ti toplogredni plini? Debelijo steklo našega rastlinjaka. Debelejše steklo pomeni, da se toplota v vesolje vrača veliko počasneje. Medtem pa ne pozabimo, da sončna energija še vedno prodira tako hitro kot prej.
The result is a planet with temperatures too hot for our liking and, eventually... living.
Rezultat je planet s temperaturami, ki so previsoke za udobje in sčasoma ... za življenje na sploh.
[Countdown Take action on climate change at Countdown.ted.com]