Trace gas causes its strong absorption of infrared radiation. Below is a table of some of the major greenhouse gases with man-made sources and their contribution to the enhanced greenhouse effect. Key Greenhouse Gases and Sources In contrast, the most abundant gases in the atmosphere are not greenhouse gases. The main reasons is because they cannot absorb infrared radiation as they do not have vibrations with a dipole moment. For instance, the triple bonds of atmospheric dinitrogen make for a highly symmetric molecule that is very inert in the atmosphere. The residence time of a trace gas depends on the abundance and
Carbon dioxide in Earth's atmosphere Atmospheric O levels are decreasing in Earth's atmosphere as it reacts with the carbon in fossil fuels to form . Burning fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum, and natural gas is the leading cause of increased anthropogenic ; deforestation is the second major cause. In 2010, 9.14 gigatonnes of carbon (GtC, equivalent to 33.5 gigatonnes of or about 4.3 ppm in Earth's atmosphere) were released from fossil fuels and cement production worldwide, compared to 6.15 GtC in 1990. In addition, land use change contributed 0.87 GtC in 2010, compared to 1.45 GtC in 1990. In 1997, human-caused Indonesian peat fires