Vijay KumarKnowledge Contributor
What are the main factors influencing climate variability and change on Earth, and how do natural processes such as solar radiation variations, volcanic activity, and orbital cycles interact with human activities such as deforestation, fossil fuel combustion, and industrial emissions to drive changes in temperature, precipitation patterns, and sea level rise, impacting global climate systems and ecosystems?
What are the main factors influencing climate variability and change on Earth, and how do natural processes such as solar radiation variations, volcanic activity, and orbital cycles interact with human activities such as deforestation, fossil fuel combustion, and industrial emissions to drive changes in temperature, precipitation patterns, and sea level rise, impacting global climate systems and ecosystems?
Climate variability and change on Earth are influenced by a combination of natural and anthropogenic factors. Natural processes, including variations in solar radiation, volcanic eruptions, and orbital cycles (Milankovitch cycles), have historically driven climate fluctuations over geological time scales. However, human activities, such as deforestation, fossil fuel combustion, and industrial emissions of greenhouse gases, have intensified since the Industrial Revolution, leading to accelerated global warming, altered precipitation patterns, and rising sea levels. The interaction between natural and anthropogenic factors exacerbates climate impacts, affecting global climate systems, ecosystems, and human societies.