Definitions for "Climate Change"
Although sometimes used synonymously with "global warming," the term implies a significant change (having important economic, environmental and social effects) in a climatic condition (such as temperature or precipitation).
Ultraviolet radiation passes through the Earths atmosphere and warms the planet’s surface before being reflected back into space as infrared radiation. Gases such as carbon dioxide and methane are called Greenhouse gases, which trap some of the heat from radiation in the atmosphere. The concentration of these gases has increased dramatically as a result of human activity therefore trapping more heat and thus causing global temperatures to increase and climates to change.
significant, long-term shifts in the underlying drivers of weather patterns and average global temperature. Scientists posit that emissions from human activities could cause radical and inhospitable changes in global climate over hundreds of years.
slow variations of climatic characteristics over time at a given place.
A statistically significant variation in either the mean state of the climate or in its variability, persisting for an extended period (typically decades or longer).