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According to NASA (yes, NASA), The greenhouse effect is when heat is trapped near Earth’s surface by gases called 'greenhouse gases.' These gases act like a blanket, keeping the planet warmer than it would be otherwise.

What Do Scientists Mean by "Climate Change"?

Climate science is crystal clear that to sustain a habitable planet humans must cut carbon emissions by 20 billion tons by 2030. Carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases are the main drivers of global warming. While we cannot stop climate change, we can slow down and mitigate its worst consequences by reducing the emissions that we are pouring into the atmosphere. We see the effects of climate change and global warming daily: Hotter summers, more severe storms, drought, damaging winds, rising sea levels and catastrophic weather events across our country, including unprecedented wildfires. This will only get worse as the planet continues to heat up and there is an urgent need to reduce our carbon output now.

For many years we spoke about climate change. However, now we speak about the climate crisis because the rate of warming is accelerating and the subsequent impact is becoming catastrophic. For example, greenhouse gases are especially concerning because it includes carbon dioxide, methane, ozone, nitrous oxide, chlorofluorocarbons, and water vapor. Water vapor is a special case because it increases the warming by reacting to temperature changes.

The potential future effects of global climate change include more frequent wildfires, longer periods of drought in some regions, and an increase in the wind intensity and rainfall from tropical cyclones.

What are the Effects of the Climate Change?

After World War II the use of fossil fuels has gone up rapidly. Each molecule of CO2, on average, stays in the atmosphere for about a hundred years and it traps heat for all of that time. Burning fossil fuels is the single largest cause of the climate crisis and that is where we need to focus.

Seventy percent of our planet is covered by the ocean. Scientists at NASA tell us that 93 percent of the extra heat caused by the greenhouse effect is being absorbed by the Earth's oceans. Oceans circulate heat around the world through massive surface and deep-water currents which help regulate global climate and weather. Warming oceans have consequences, including devastating the world’s coral reefs and playing havoc with our weather systems. Climate change is disrupting how oceans regulate global temperatures.

The effects of the climate crisis are all around us. From more severe hurricanes and typhoons, to record breaking fire seasons and devastation. The severe drought of this summer is an effect of climate change, as are our warmer winters and hotter and drier summers. This is, unfortunately, the new normal. We can see the weather is changing and each year we are seeing more signs that things are heading in the wrong direction. Even in our little Village we are seeing severe weather. Just think about the effects of some of the recent strong storms we’ve experienced 😳

Image Source: Left - Mike McMillan/USFS, center - Tomas Castelazo / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0, right - NASA.

Climate change is having an uneven effect on precipitation (rain and snow) in the United States, with some locations experiencing increased precipitation and flooding, while others suffer from drought. On average, more winter and spring precipitation is projected.

Photo: Rescue personnel with the Westchester County Emergency Services use rafts as they check buildings for victims trapped in heavy flooding in Mamaroneck, N.Y. (September 2023) Mike Segar / Reuters

Future Effects of Global Climate Change (NASA, 2025)

Climate change is bringing different types of challenges to each region of the country. Some of the current and future impacts are summarized below. These findings are from the Third3 and Fourth4 National Climate Assessment Reports, released by the U.S. Global Change Research Program.

In the Northeast, we will see more changes in precipitation patterns. Heat waves, heavy downpours, and sea level rise pose increasing challenges to many aspects of life in the Northeast. Infrastructure, agriculture, fisheries, and ecosystems will be increasingly compromised. Farmers can explore new crop options, but these adaptations are not cost- or risk-free. Moreover, according to NASA adaptive capacity, which varies throughout the region, could be overwhelmed by a changing climate. Many states and cities are beginning to incorporate climate change into their planning.

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