Understanding the ocean's function can illustrate how it effects climate. The water cycle links all the water in the atmosphere in the ocean and other bodies of water and the land. And there's more to the relationship between the ocean and atmosphere, according to Dr. Dan Cayan, director of the Climate Research Division at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. But as the air and the sea are exchanging heat, those changes in the reservoir of heat in the ocean can be communicated to great depth. And that water, that altered water, moves through the ocean and eventually may have again an effect on the atmosphere, once it comes back into contact.
Fossil fuels are energy sources that are naturally found in the earth's crust.
They include coal, natural gas and petroleum. When fossil fuels are burned, they emit greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide. By serving as an additional source of radiant energy, greenhouse gases such as water vapor, carbon dioxide and methane, keep the earth's surface warmer than it otherwise would be. In the proper proportion, this group of gases keeps the earth inhabitable. Most scientists agree that people have contributed to the increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide through activities such as driving and deforestation, and in turn, that increase has led to some amount of warming on Earth.