Definitions
What is weather and climate?
Weather is what occurs every day. It refers to temperature, wind speed, storms, and other related factors. The time scale for weather ranges from minutes to weeks. Climate is various averages of different weather over the course of several years. It is fairly standard to take averages of weather observations over 30 years. Some of these averages taken are temperature, precipitation, and humidity. They are similar in that geographic location influences the outcomes of each.
What are greenhouse gases?
Greenhouse gases are gases that are efficient at absorbing and retaining heat. The main greenhouse gases in the Earth’s atmosphere are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).
What is a carbon footprint?
It is the total amount of greenhouse gases that one's actions generate. A carbon footprint can also be calculated for businesses and products by totaling the emissions caused by company operations or totaling the emissions caused by creating and distributing a product. You can calculate your own carbon footprint in the Take Action tab.
Sources:
National Aerospace and Aviation Association. (n.d.). Facts: Causes of climate change. Global Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet. https://climate.nasa.gov/causes/
National Centers for Environmental Information. (n.d.). What's the difference between weather and climate? https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/weather-vs-climate
The Nature Conservancy. (2020). How to help: Calculate your carbon footprint. https://www.nature.org/en-us/get-involved/how-to-help/carbon-footprint-