Climate Connections: Causes
Wikipedia.org/Creative CommonsOur everyday activities – from switching on a light bulb or driving a car, to clearing forests or planting crops — are adding vast quantities of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases to the atmosphere, raising global temperatures.
IN THIS SERIES
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20081229014515im_/http://media.npr.org/programs/atc/features/2008/jan/katrina/nasa75.jpg)
January 21, 2008 · Hurricane Katrina destroyed hundreds of millions of trees. As those trees decay, they're emitting tons of carbon dioxide, new research shows. And that makes them part of the climate-change problem that makes intense storms like Katrina more frequent.
()
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20081229014515im_/http://media.npr.org/news/specials/climate/images/flooding/flood75.jpg)
January 14, 2008 · A warming atmosphere also means a warming ocean. As water heats up, it expands and triggers a sea level rise around the world. By 2080, a U.N. panel predicts this will have devastating consequences for millions of people around the world – rich and poor alike.
()
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20081229014515im_/http://media.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2007/nov/texas/highway1_75.jpg)
November 26, 2007 · Texas is the nation's largest energy hog because it has a lot of industry, a lot of people, a lot of air conditioning, a lot of miles and a lot of big cars. But in a state where many think bigger is better, there are a few signs that attitudes toward consumption are changing.
()
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20081229014515im_/http://media.npr.org/news/images/2007/nov/14/carbon_map75.jpg)
November 14, 2007 · Power plants are the biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, accounting for 40 percent of the CO2 pumped into the atmosphere. A new Web site shows how much carbon is coming from each plant or power company around the world.
()
November 12, 2007 · In Brazil, a fast-growing soybean industry is fueled by demand from Europe and China. But foreign consumers are also pressuring Brazilian farmers to stop clearing tropical forests, a major storehouse of the carbon that contributes to global warming.
()
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20081229014515im_/http://media.npr.org/programs/atc/features/2007/nov/amazon/smoke75.jpg)
November 5, 2007 · In Brazil, people use fire as a weapon in range wars to push other ranchers off their land. Scientists say these fires, along with the seasonal fires to clear land, is not just destroying parts of the Amazon's southern forests, but altering the climate as well.
()
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20081229014515im_/http://media.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2007/oct/tambora/volcano75.jpg)
October 22, 2007 · Two centuries ago, an enormous volcanic explosion on an Indonesian island spewed molten rock and clouds of gas into the atmosphere, causing a "year without summer" as far away as America. Within the next millennium, the Earth is due for another such blast.
()
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20081229014515im_/http://media.npr.org/programs/day/features/2007/oct/japan_nature/metro_building75.jpg)
October 9, 2007 · Shinto is a distinctly Japanese religion and it attributes souls to animals, vegetables and even rocks. But for decades, construction driven by public works projects has turned Japan into the ugliest country in the world, according to one expert.
()
September 3, 2007 · For the last century, Americans have had a love affair with their cars. Americans drive bigger cars than any other country. And, even if they're currently trendy, fuel-efficient cars still don't sell as well in the United States as elsewhere. Can America change?
()
August 18, 2007 · The last underdeveloped part of Spain's Mediterranean coast is disappearing in an onslaught of hotels and retirement homes. But the coast of Almeria is semi-desert, with the water for development coming from a de-salinization plants.
()
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20081229014515im_/http://media.npr.org/news/specials/climate/images/seasprimer/earth75.jpg)
August 2, 2007 · The ocean's job is to keep the planet cool by absorbing carbon dixoide from the atmosphere. These days, it's working overtime
()
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20081229014515im_/http://media.npr.org/programs/atc/features/2007/jul/flaring/flaring75.jpg)
July 24, 2007 · Natural gas is a byproduct of drilling for oil. Nigeria disposes of it through burning, emitting millions of tons of carbon dioxide each year. The practice is wreaking havoc on the country's environment and the health of its people.
()
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20081229014515im_/http://media.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2007/jul/carbon/scientist75.jpg)
July 19, 2007 · The world, long content with living off carbon, is now restless with new ideas. And a range of solutions are on the table, from carbon "vacuums" to energy sources relying on wind, water and trash.
()
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20081229014515im_/http://media.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2007/jul/carbon/carbon75.jpg)
July 3, 2007 · An almost unbreakable connection sparks when the polygamous carbon hooks up with not one, but two oxygen atoms. But as more and more CO2 is released into the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels, the atmosphere heats up, causing the sizzling – but unwanted — effect of global warming.
()
June 25, 2007 · On Heron Island, off the coast of Australia, weird moans of mutton birds surround scientists who have come to this outpost to study how global warming is changing life in surrounding seas.
()