The Greenhouse Effect Graphic

The Greenhouse Effect shows a graphic of solar energy and the greenhouse gas effect overlaid on a picture of the earth. The greenhouse effect is shown to follow these five steps:

1. Solar radiation passes through the clear atmosphere.
2. Most radiation is absorbed by the Earth's surface and warms it.
3. Some solar radiation is reflected by the Earth and the atmosphere.
4. Some of the infrared radiation passes through the atmosphere, and some is absorbed and re-emitted in all directions by greenhouse gas molecules. The effect of this is to warm the Earth's surface and the lower atmosphere.
5. Infrared radiation is emitted from the Earth's surface.