Temperature, weather, climate
Temperature
The temperature on Earth depends on many factors. External factors include the activity of the Sun (solar cycles) and the position and movement of Earth around the Sun.
Albedo, Earth’s brightness, also plays an important role. It describes how much sunlight Earth reflects back into space. Most of the sunlight that is not reflected is converted into heat. This causes Earth’s surface and atmosphere to warm.
Other influencing factors are the distribution of continents, air and ocean currents as well as global events such as El Niño (warming of ocean surface waters in the tropical Pacific) and volcanic eruptions.
However, without greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the average temperature on Earth would only be -18°C. They raise the temperature to a life-friendly +15°C through Earth’s natural greenhouse effect.
Weather
The weather describes the state of the atmosphere over short periods lasting from minutes to weeks. A windy day with rapid changes between sun, snow and rain is a typical example of our April weather.
Climate and climate change
Climate is the average weather over at least 10 years in a larger area. In Central Europe, the climate is moderate, meaning generally without extreme temperatures or precipitation. Isolated extreme weather events such as heavy rain, droughts or unusually high temperatures do not change the climate. Only when such events occur more frequently and become ‘normal’ is the climate no longer the same: it has changed and has – in this case – become warmer.