Greenhouse Effect and Global Climate Change Lab
Activity 1 Heat transfer and the Greenhouse effect
By examining what happens to the global temperature in the absence and the presence of the
greenhouse effect, in this activity you will see the significance of the greenhouse effect in
heating the atmosphere.
A. In the absence of greenhouse effect
Answer questions 1 to 8 using Figure 1 and the temperature-energy graph below.
Figure 1. A diagram showing the amount of energy each square meter of the Earth’s
surface receives from the Sun and the amount emitted from the Earth each second (left).
The Earth’s surface temperature versus the amount of heat received (right).
1. Incoming solar energy that reaches the atmosphere and is absorbed by the Earth's
surface is primarily in the form of (visible light, infrared radiation, ultraviolet
radiation)
2. The radiation emitted by the Earth is (visible, infrared, ultraviolet)
3. Which one has longer wavelength? (visible, infrared)
4. How much energy is the Earth receiving per second per square meter? (Hint: see
visible)
5. How much energy is the Earth emitting per second per square meter? (Hint: see
infrared)
6. Based on the amount of heat the Earth is emitting, the average temperature of the
Earth should be about oF? (Use the graph to find the temperature that
corresponds to 240 J)
7. If there were no greenhouse effect, the Earth would become (very hot, normal,
frozen)
