The image shown above, represents a sick earth coughing up what appears to be smoke. This is most likely due to the pollution we have created through out the centuries. The related unit is "gas and atmospheric chemistry." The big ideas within this unit is air quality can be affected by human activities and technology and people have a responsibility to protect the integrity of Earth's atmosphere. The uses of everyday items cause constant greenhouse gases to get release into the atmosphere.
The release of methane gases into the atmosphere from our backsides is enough that the world can handle, but the release of many of these 'farts' from the amount of cars that inhabit this earth and the amount of smoke released by companies with huge stacks is burning a hole through the ozone layer. Fossil fuel energy is the most dangerous kind of energy and our Earth's main source of energy is fossil fuels. Estimations by the Energy Information agency (2007) list petroleum (approx. 36%), coal (approx. 27.4%) and coal (approx. 23%) as the top three energy sources and amount to 86.4%of the worlds energy source. As a result of this non-renewable consuming our earth, scientists have started looking into renewable sources that produce much less environmentally friendly gases namely, electricity or harnessing wind energy.
With the increasingly amount of problems and deadly diseases such as: asthma, lung diseases and heart disease, the cleanliness of our oxygen is becoming more vital to surviving for future generations. The bigger the population gets, the more pollution is created and the thicker the smog in the air gets. An example of this was the Summer Olympics of 2008 in Beijing, China. The amount of people in china is extraordinary and as a result, a thick cloud of smog had surrounded the stadium. This is a problem to the world because wind blows this smog around the world and within days, it could reach North America. Cleaner energy sources are becoming crucial to the living organisms that have taken a domain on Earth.
Energy Information Administration (January 18, 2011).
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