The Anthropocene is the current geological age where human activity has been the dominant influence on climate and the environment. Various start dates for the Anthropocene have been proposed with the majority preferring the mid-20th century (1950), which has been proposed by the Anthropocene Working Group (AWG).

Greenhouse gases (GHG) are gases in Earth's atmosphere that trap heat - without them, Earth would be very cold, around -18 degree Celsius. However, due to human activity, the total amount of GHG's has severely increased, causing global temperatures to rise.

The most important anthropogenic GHG is Carbon Dioxide (CO₂) which is responsible for around 60% of the additional heating to our atmosphere. Since 1750, the amount of CO₂ in the atmosphere has increased by about 30%. Anthropogenic emissions of CO₂ come from fossil fuel combustion and industrial processes as well as agriculture, deforestation, and other land-use changes. Other GHGs include Methane, Nitrous Oxide and Fluorinated gases (F-gases).

GOSAT (JAXA) was the first satellite dedicated to monitoring GHGs, it measures the densities of carbon dioxide and methane from 56,000 locations on the Earth's surface. And the SCIAMACHY instrument aboard Envisat (ESA) was the first satellite able to measure CO₂. Other satellites that measure GHGs include the NASA satellites' OCO and OCO-2; ESA satellites Sentinel-5p, and the future mission CO2M; and third-party satellites such as GHGSat.

Featured Educator

• Prof.Dr. Ilse Aben, Senior Scientist, SRON

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