Over the past three days, I have learned about my carbon footprint, how I indirectly and directly produce greenhouse gasses, and how I contribute to climate change. Using the carbon footprint calculator, I discovered that most of the carbon I produce comes from transportation. I travel a lot during the winter, to get to my ski team, and while my traveling across the state may seem harmless, it produces a lot of greenhouse gasses, which contribute to climate change. One of the most common greenhouse gases is carbon dioxide or CO2. Co2 is a naturally occurring gas in the Earth's atmosphere. It helps keep the planet habitable, by trapping heat in the atmosphere. According to the article "How Exactly Does Carbon Dioxide Cause Global Warming?" Co2 soaks up infrared energy or heat. The molecules vibrate and re-emit the energy in every direction. About half the heat that Co2 absorbs ends up back in the atmosphere, but half of it is still on Earth. Unfortunately, human development has created much more Co2, and this gas is still being produced. This means that as more CO2 is being produced, the temperature of the Earth is rising, causing irreversible damage.