Who is the top contributer to global warming?

Answer 1

It is surmised that carbon dioxide is the top contributor to global warming. It, along with other greenhouse gases, have caused climate change worldwide.

Another view:

There is no compelling reason to blame carbon dioxide for rises in temperatures. A weak correlation between CO2 levels and rising temps does not imply that CO2 causes global warming.

One hundred years of temp watching is not enough time when considering earth's climate history.

The observation of two trends rising together for a short time is no reason to believe one is the cause of the other. To establish a casual relationship it must show that the cause precedes the effect, for it to be valid. The relationship should also be shown in increases and decreases in climate cycles.

And even when the criteria are met, as in the case of solar/climate relationships, many people are unwilling to acknowledge the variation in the presumed cause truly produced the variation in the presumed effect.

Considering the temp variations in the last half million years, three glacial terminations and four glacial inceptions, it was noted that increase and decreases in co2 atmospheric concentration did not precede the changes in air temperature, it followed them, and in some cases by hundreds of thousands of years.

There were long periods of time when co2 levels increased, yet temps remained fairly constant, or dropped. There were periods when the co2 dropped, and temps actually rose.

Also, strong negative climatic feedbacks prohibit catastrophic warming.

These play a great role in the planet's climate. If they did not, no life could exist here.

Warmer temps would mean more evaporation, which means more clouds in the atmosphere.

This would tend to cool the planet by reflecting solar radiation back into space.

Also, there is no evidence that rising co2 level cause more violent storms.

There is evidence that solar activity may have caused the warming of the 70's through the 90's.

But it is clear there has been no warming for 17 years, which may be long term, or just a pause in the warming trend.

Answer 2

China