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Water vapor can also be indirect evidence supporting the presence of extraterrestrial liquid water in the case of some planetary mass objects. Water vapor, which reacts to temperature changes, is referred to as a 'feedback', because it amplifies the effect of forces that initially cause the warming. Therefore, it is a greenhouse gas. [2]
Water vapor is the most important greenhouse gas overall, being responsible for 41–67% of the greenhouse effect, [31] [32] but its global concentrations are not directly affected by human activity. While local water vapor concentrations can be affected by developments such as irrigation , it has little impact on the global scale due to its ...
For example, a warmer atmosphere can contain more water vapor which has effects on evaporation and rainfall. The underlying cause of the intensifying water cycle is the increased amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, which lead to a warmer atmosphere through the greenhouse effect. [3]
[4]: 96 Accordingly, anthropogenic climate change alone cannot cause a runaway greenhouse effect. [5] [6] Feedbacks can be divided into physical feedbacks and partially biological feedbacks. Physical feedbacks include decreased surface reflectivity (from diminished snow and ice cover) and increased water vapor in the atmosphere.
Longwave absorption coefficients of water vapor and carbon dioxide. For wavelengths near 15 microns (15 μm in top scale), where Earth's surface emits strongly, CO 2 is a much stronger absorber than water vapor. Greenhouse gases absorb and emit longwave radiation within specific ranges of wavelengths (organized as spectral lines or bands). [15]
where P 1, P 2 are the vapor pressures at temperatures T 1, T 2 respectively, ΔH vap is the enthalpy of vaporization, and R is the universal gas constant. The rate of evaporation in an open system is related to the vapor pressure found in a closed system. If a liquid is heated, when the vapor pressure reaches the ambient pressure the liquid ...
Mars may have experienced the opposite of a runaway greenhouse effect: a runaway refrigerator effect. Through this effect, a runaway feedback process may have removed much carbon dioxide and water vapor from the atmosphere and cooled the planet. Water condenses on the surface, leading to carbon dioxide dissolving and chemically binding to minerals.
The amount of water vapor that can be stored in the air can be increased simply by increasing the temperature. [8] However, this can be a double edged sword as most condensation in the home occurs when warm, moisture heavy air comes into contact with a cool surface. As the air is cooled, it can no longer hold as much water vapor.