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greenhouse effect
The process in which greenhouse gases in the atmosphere of a planet or moon transmit radiant energy from the host star but are opaque to the longer wavelengths of infrared radiation, or heat, which re-radiate from the surface. This results in an elevation of the surface temperature. The Earth, for example, is about 35°C warmer overall than it would be without any greenhouse contribution, while the runaway greenhouse effect on Venus pushes up the surface temperature there by as much as 500°C. By contrast, the thin carbon dioxide atmosphere on Mars contributes only about a 5°C rise in surface temperature.
Related categories
• ATMOSPHERIC PHENOMENA AND STRUCTURES
• ASTROBIOLOGY
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