Introduction
Central to the theory of Anthropogenic Global Warming (AGW) is the assumption that the Earth and every one of its subsystems behaviors as if they were blackbodies, that is their “emissivity” potential is calculated as 1.0. [1]
But this is an erroneous assumption because the Earth and its subsystems are not blackbodies, but gray-bodies. The Earth and all of its subsystems are gray-bodies because they do not absorb the whole load of radiant energy that they receive from the Sun and they do not emit the whole load of radiant energy that they absorb. [8] [9] [10]
Furthermore the role of carbon dioxide is misunderstood. According to AGW hypothesis, carbon dioxide is the second most significant driver of the Earth’s temperature, behind the water vapor, which is considered the most important driver of the Earth’s climate. [2] Other authors of AGW discharge absolutely the role of water vapor and focus their arguments on the carbon dioxide. [3]
What is the total emissivity of carbon dioxide? I will consider this question with reference to the science of radiative heat transfer.
Jennifer Marohasy BSc PhD has worked in industry and government. She is currently researching a novel technique for long-range weather forecasting funded by the B. Macfie Family Foundation.