What We Know For Sure - Enhanced Transcript

Published: November 3rd, 2009 in Causes, Greenhouse Gases, Trends, United States, West, Flora & Fauna, Energy, Fossil Fuels, States of Change
Originally broadcast on: June 13th, 2008 on

0:11

Heidi Cullen (for Climate Central): Up here on Mauna Loa, on Hawaii's Big Island, scientists are hard at work. They are taking the pulse of the planet by measuring carbon dioxide every day.
- The longest-running effort to track atmospheric CO2 began in 1958
0:22

Heidi Cullen: We’ve all heard by now that greenhouse gases are increasing in the atmosphere. In fact, according to a recent report, carbon dioxide emissions rose sharply in 2007.
- Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are increasing
0:34

Heidi Cullen: But what makes scientists so sure that it's our burning of coal and oil and natural gas that's causing it? In part because this machine proves it. It's called a spectrometer and it's able to see the invisible gases that make up the Earth's atmosphere. One of those gases is carbon dioxide, and most of it comes from tailpipes and smokestacks.
- Fossil fuel use has driven the recent jump in atmospheric CO2
1:00

Heidi Cullen: Charles Keeling knew that carbon dioxide helped set the planet's thermostat. After he started tracking CO2 in 1958, Keeling discovered that the planet breathes. Each spring when trees bloom, CO2 drops, and each autumn as leaves fall and plants die, CO2 spikes.
1:23

Heidi Cullen: Keeling also saw a slow, steady trend of increasing CO2 in the atmosphere. Because carbon dioxide traps heat, the more CO2 the warmer the planet gets.
- Climbing levels of CO2 in the atmosphere are causing global warming

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