He explains how the Earth has had many periods of change: land-mass movement, asteroids, ice ages and warming periods, massive species extinction, and so on.  That sets the context for what we are doing to the Earth now.

Millions and millions of years of plant growth, particularly trees, are now in the soil. a gigantic Carbon storage, and about to be released if there is widespread melting. Those trees became coal, which we burn now and fill the atmosphere with CO2. Climate change is, to some degree and perhaps a large degree, because of Man's activities - yet we can get solar power for free, wind power for free, and so on.
  

    
Tyson does not debate Climate Change 'deniers' - nor should he.  Debate and discussion need to be rational, and not politicized.  Too many people are rejecting science because they are either (1) scared of climate change, (2) brainwashed by Talk Radio and other Conservative efforts, or (3) through lack of education.  Having said that, there are some scientists who question some of the conclusions of Climate Change that those discussions can be interesting.  We are looking for skeptics who can write articles questioning Climate Change - if that is you, please submit a summary of your proposed article here.
  
Cosmos covers a different topic each week.  We are very glad that Tyson took on the task of explaining Climate Change. You can find the episode online and the series can be found on FOX.
  

China is now the world's largest product of atmospheric CO2, and the Chinese are not showing any indication that they care about the environment  However, there is some good news.  In the US the Supreme Court just upheld the governments action to reduce Coal Pollution; read more here.

Clearly, the atmosphere is going in the wrong direction.  Our global efforts so far have not made a dent in the rise of CO2.  This will further fuel Global Warming, and gives more risk for catastrophic Climate Change.
  

  
This is the first time in about 800,000 years that global CO2 levels have been this high. This should worry everyone.   We know that the Earth has had many cycles of warming and cooling; this should not 'reassure' anyone but actually should be a concern - it means that the Earth is ready.  It will adapt, and does not care if we are hurt in the process.  In the worst warming periods, much of the lilfe on Earth died.  

And CO2 is not the only problem; there are other gases that humans are releasing into the air, on a regular basis - including Methane, Ozone, and Nitrous Oxide.  Methane is potentially worse than CO2, and this is a concern because as Global Warming continues, we will see more and more of the Permafrost melting - in Siberia, and other areas near the poles.  Permafrost stores carbon; this carbon storage is in the form of Peat, and Methane gas.  Current estimates of this carbon pool in Permafrost are an amount of carbon larger than all living things combined, and twice as much as is currently in the atmosphere.  This helps us understand how climate models show a sea level rise of 250 feet or more, in the worst case of all melting (the Poles, Permafrost, and Greenland).

Scientists believe we will not get back below 400 PPM for at least 100 years - if ever.
 

China has a large and growing economy.  When you combine that with a lack of concern for the environment, it is the perfect storm for damaging the climate.  In China there are many new coal plants being built every year.  Historically, the US was the worst offender when it came to Man Made Climate Change; but now China is doing more damage than anyone, and its getting worse every year.  This is a stark example of what happens when a country focuses only on growth and on their economy, instead of focusing on what is good for the country, its people - and its future.  To read a non-biased summary of just how bad the Chinese climate viewpoint is, read this Wikipedia article.

We would like to hear from people living in China who are about the environment.  I believe that the citizens of every country in the world do car about the environment, do are about the future and want to have a safe and healthy world for their children, and their children's children.  If you live in China, and want to help us here at ManMadeClimateChange.com, then contact us.  We need volunteers, blog articles, and help organizing local/company events.

Climate Change is a long term process where the earth's climate evolves due to many factors.  Warming is the average temperature across the entire planet; local areas can have temporary periods where they get colder. Factors for climate change include effects from the Sun, ocean currents, naturally occurring weather patterns, effects from the biology itself on our planet - and from human activities as well.   

The risk to us all is that human activities are increasing; the load we are putting on the atmosphere is getting worse each year, not better.  The science has shown that it is already too late to avoid the part of climate change that we have caused; now we have to try to at least slow it down, and we have to learn to live in a warming world.

The science is extensive, and very clear.  The overall picture of Climate Change:

• Air and Sea temperatures are both rising; they have done so for a long time, and this will accelerate
  
• Since 1970, 90% of the earth's warming has occurred in the oceans
  
• Scientists are now over 90% sure that man's activities are playing a role in global warming
• The biggest factor in global warming is CO2 production from fossil fuels, cement production, and land use
• Computer models have become much more sophisticated.  The same modeling techniques are used when scientists do other work in medicine, modeling nuclear explosions, and so on.
• Warming temperatures will melt glaciers, the poles, and the ice of greenland resulting is rising sea levels.
• Many species will be displaced or go extinct
• Deserts will increase in size, particularly in Africa and Australia
• Not all effects will be bad - as the poles melt, this will free  up new, usable land.
• Poor nations will suffer most; richer nations care less because their extensive resources maintain their quality of life.
• Extreme weather events will become more common, in a warmer world
• Some island communities will find their homeland completely disappears
• Food scarcity will become more common
• The public is largely unaware of the science; scientists need to do a better job of educating others

   
To get a more detailed understanding of climate change, read the Wikipedia articles on Global Warming and a second article, on Climate Change.

There is a lot that you can do to help the climate.  Improving your diet to eat more plants and less meat will reduce the effect of agriculture on climate change; it takes a lot of to raise animals for meat consumption.  Making your home more energy efficient, driving less and using public transportation helps - or get out your bike and get some exercise too!  Contact your legislators and urge more action on Climate Change.  Join online initiatives that can help the environment.  Start a web page, start your own local group to improve your city and local governments.  We can each make a big difference!