What term describes the global warming driven in part by human emissions of greenhouse gases, and the resulting large-scale shifts in weather patterns?

What term describes the global warming driven in part by human emissions of greenhouse gases, and the resulting large-scale shifts in weather patterns?

• A. Global warming
• B. Weather anomalies
• C. Climate change
• D. Atmospheric shifts

Answer: (C)

Global warming is the long-term rise in Earth's average temperature caused largely by human greenhouse gas emissions. Climate change describes the broader picture: the warming plus the large-scale shifts in weather patterns that come with it, including changes in precipitation, storm intensity and frequency, and sea level. Because the question pairs the warming with these widespread weather changes, the term that fits best is climate change. The other terms are narrower or not quite accurate for this broader, system-wide effect: global warming alone points to temperature rise, weather anomalies focus on unusual short-term events, and atmospheric shifts isn’t the standard way this concept is described.

Global warming is the long-term rise in Earth's average temperature caused largely by human greenhouse gas emissions. Climate change describes the broader picture: the warming plus the large-scale shifts in weather patterns that come with it, including changes in precipitation, storm intensity and frequency, and sea level. Because the question pairs the warming with these widespread weather changes, the term that fits best is climate change. The other terms are narrower or not quite accurate for this broader, system-wide effect: global warming alone points to temperature rise, weather anomalies focus on unusual short-term events, and atmospheric shifts isn’t the standard way this concept is described.