Name: How quantum mechanics explains global warming
Uploaded: 2019-03-22T18:25:29Z
Duration: 4 min 45 s
Description: You've probably heard that carbon dioxide is warming the Earth. But how exactly is it doing it? Lieven Scheire uses a rainbow, a light bulb and a bit of quantum physics to describe the science behind global warming. [Directed by STK Films, narrated Addison Anderson, music by Michael Dow].

You've probably heard that carbon dioxide is warming the Earth. But how exactly is it doing it? Lieven Scheire uses a rainbow, a light bulb and a bit of quantum physics to describe the science behind global warming. [Directed by STK Films, narrated Addison Anderson, music by Michael Dow].

Lieven Scheire: How quantum mechanics explains global warming

How quantum mechanics explains global warming

Quantum mechanics reveals light's role in global warming: CO2 absorbs Earth's infrared light, not the sun's, warming our planet.

Every heated object emits light; Earth emits infrared radiation. Greenhouse gases like CO2 capture this, heating our atmosphere.

Carbon dioxide's selective absorption of infrared photons, re-emitted in random directions, illustrates the science behind global warming.