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Added some more information on carbon dioxide
A '''greenhouse gas''' is any gas which contributes to the [[greenhouse effect]].
A '''greenhouse gas''' is any gas which contributes to the [[greenhouse effect]].
The most important greenhouse gas is [[water vapor]];<ref>Water vapor has the largest greenhouse effect. [http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Library/glossary.php3?mode=all (NASA)] </ref> see [[cloud cover]].
The most abundant greenhouse gas is [[water vapor]];<ref>Water vapor has the largest greenhouse effect, though since the quantity of water vapor in the atmosphere is determined primarily by the temperature it is not regarded as a climate forcing agent. [http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Library/glossary.php3?mode=all (NASA)] </ref> see [[cloud cover]].
Also important are [[carbon dioxide]], [[methane]], [[nitrous oxide]], and [[ozone]].<ref>http://yosemite.epa.gov/oar/globalwarming.nsf/content/emissions.html</ref>
Also important are [[carbon dioxide]], [[methane]], [[nitrous oxide]], and [[ozone]].<ref>http://yosemite.epa.gov/oar/globalwarming.nsf/content/emissions.html</ref>
The level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased by about 37 percent since the start of industrialization. It is now at its highest level in at least 650,000 years.<ref>[[http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v453/n7193/abs/nature06949.html (Nature)]] </ref>
The nature of a greenhouse gas is to pass [[visible light]], i.e., incoming energy from the sun, but to be opaque to the [[infrared]], i.e., heat energy being re-radiated outward from the earth's surface. This functions much like the [[glass]] on a [[man-made]] [[greenhouse]], and serves to trap warmth at the surface and in the lower [[atmosphere]].
The nature of a greenhouse gas is to pass [[visible light]], i.e., incoming energy from the sun, but to be opaque to the [[infrared]], i.e., heat energy being re-radiated outward from the earth's surface. This functions much like the [[glass]] on a [[man-made]] [[greenhouse]], and serves to trap warmth at the surface and in the lower [[atmosphere]].