Symptoms and Effects of Climate Change

Long-term changes in the atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases—notably carbon dioxide (CO2), methane, and nitrous oxide—due to human activities has altered the radiative forcing of the atmosphere and its energy balance. The physical impacts of these disruptions, known collectively as climate change, are varied but present across the globe. Due to the central importance of the atmosphere in all global environmental cycles, the symptoms and effects of climate change are potentially present anywhere on Earth. Study of these issues requires practitioners to maintain a holistic view of global biogeochemical interactions. The primary feature of climate change effects, as increased energy is expressed in the atmosphere, is less predictability and greater oscillations in environmental system behavior.