Trapped Heat: Understanding the greenhouse effect in cars

During hot weather, everyone must have experienced that whenever we get in the car, it’s always hotter than outside. I always wondered why.

I understood this after learning about the phenomenon of the Green House Effect.

When the car is left in the sun, the heat waves from the sun get into the car but do not pass back through its windows. The glass of the car is transparent to the light, so the energy is absorbed by the interior of the car increasing the temperature.

Those items emit heat radiations that can’t pass back through the glass. Thus more energy comes through the glass than leaving it. So the heat gets trapped in the car and makes it hotter than outside.

This whole process is called the Greenhouse effect.

Similarly, when sunlight reaches the Earth, the Earth after absorbing the heat also emits heat waves which are trapped by the greenhouse gases present in Earth’s atmosphere. Thus making the temperature of Earth warmer.

Thus it helps our planet liveable by holding some of the energy so that all of it doesn’t escape into space. Thus making the temperature of Earth suitable for life. Too less greenhouse gases will make Earth colder and too much of it will make Earth hotter.

But, nowadays due to pollution, the heat is increasing in Earth’s atmosphere resulting in many ecological changes which are very harmful. So it’s everyone’s responsibility to plant trees, save water, and reduce pollution to maintain the necessary level of Greenhouse gases.