The Role of Carbon Dioxide and the Importance of Greenhouse Gases Carbon Cycle and Climate Change

First of all, the section on the carbon cycle describes the quantities of carbon in and, in particular, in the case of carbon dioxide, the interactions between different terrestrial spheres. Special attention is drawn to sources and sinks for CO2 in the atmosphere. Based on this, it is shown that the natural greenhouse effect, which is characterized by solar radiation and infrared-active greenhouse gases such as CO2, CH4 and N2O, over a longer period of time resulted in a thermal-radiative equilibrium. This determined the temperature and thus the climate which is a prerequisite for life on Earth. The drastic increase in near-surface temperatures, for example, and the rise in sea level in recent decades is caused by increasing anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases. The dramatic increase in CO2-concentration is caused by the use of fossil fuels. Sinks absorb only a part of the anthropogenically produced CO2 from the atmosphere. A brief note on sustainable technologies is given at the end.