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Created 3/29/16. Updates available online.

The Greenhouse Effect

The Greenhouse Effect Screenshot
  • Greenhouse Effect
  • Greenhouse Gases
  • Heat

About

Topics

  • Greenhouse Effect
  • Greenhouse Gases
  • Heat
  • Thermodynamics
  • Climate

Description

How do greenhouse gases affect the climate? Explore the atmosphere during the ice age and today. What happens when you add clouds? Change the greenhouse gas concentration and see how the temperature changes. Then compare to the effect of glass panes. Zoom in and see how light interacts with molecules. Do all atmospheric gases contribute to the greenhouse effect?

Sample Learning Goals

  • Describe the effect of greenhouse gases on photons and temperature
  • Describe the effect of clouds on photons and temperature
  • Compare the effect of greenhouse gases to the effect of glass panes
  • Describe the interaction of photons with atmospheric gases
  • Explain why greenhouse gases affect temperature
Version 3.04

For Teachers

Teacher Tips

Download teacher tips PDF Overview of sim controls, model simplifications, and insights into student thinking ( PDF ).

Teacher-Submitted Activities

Title Gold Star Contribution Contribution by PhET Authors Level Type
Using PhET in High School Chemistry- all my activities in pdf A gold star indicates high-quality, inquiry-based activities that follow the PhET design guidelines. This contribution was designed by PhET. Trish Loeblein UG-Intro
HS		 HW
Lab
CQs
Demo
Investigating Climate Change at the Macroscopic and Microscopic Level A gold star indicates high-quality, inquiry-based activities that follow the PhET design guidelines. This contribution was designed by PhET. Amy Rouinfar HS
MS		 Lab
Greenhouse gases - sense making by observing photons A gold star indicates high-quality, inquiry-based activities that follow the PhET design guidelines. This contribution was designed by PhET. Trish Loeblein HS
UG-Intro		 Lab
HW
Investigating the Greenhouse Effect A gold star indicates high-quality, inquiry-based activities that follow the PhET design guidelines. Traci Radil HS Lab
PhET Sims Aligned to the Chemistry Curriculum This contribution was designed by PhET. Julia Chamberlain HS
UG-Intro		 Other
How do PhET simulations fit in my middle school program? This contribution was designed by PhET. Sarah Borenstein MS Other
Alignment of PhET sims with NGSS This contribution was designed by PhET. Trish Loeblein HS Other
Blackbody Spectrum Simulation Homework This contribution was designed by PhET. Kathy Perkins, Carl Wieman UG-Adv
UG-Intro		 HW
Greenhouse Simulation Lesson This contribution was designed by PhET. Kathy Perkins, Carl Wieman HS
UG-Intro		 Demo
Greenhouse Gases and Their Effect on Earth's Climate Nathan Quarderer UG-Intro Guided
Lab
Discuss
HW
The Greenhouse Effect PhET Simulation Lab Matthew Wasilawski HS Lab
MS and HS TEK to Sim Alignment Elyse Zimmer MS
HS		 Other
The Greenhouse Effect Amy Jordan HS Lab
Greenhouse Effect Guided Worksheet Christine Russo K-5
MS
HS		 Guided
NGSS Simulation Alignment/Correlation Matthew Huffine HS
K-5
UG-Intro
MS		 Demo
Other
Greenhouse Effect: Good or Bad? Nathan Quarderer UG-Intro Lab
Greenhouse Kristy Bibbey HS CQs
Greenhouse Effect Basics David Moutoux MS
HS		 Lab
The Greenhouse Effect Edina Levnjak MS Lab
Greenhouse Effect Kevin Fairchild MS
HS		 Lab
The Greenhouse Effect Lab Greg Van Houten HS Lab
Greenhouse Effect Kayne Spooner HS Lab
온실효과 SIM 사용지침서 이화국(Wha Kuk Lee) MS
HS		 Lab
Demo

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Translations

Language Download or Run Tips
Albanian All shqipe Run now Efekti serrë
Arabic All العربية Run now تأثير الاحتباس الحراري
Basque All Basque Run now Berotegi Efektua
Belarusian All беларускі Run now Парніковы эфект
Bosnian All Bosanski Run now EFEKAT STAKLENE BAŠTE
Chinese (Simplified) All 中文 (中国) Run now 温室效应
Chinese (Traditional) All 中文 (台灣) Run now 溫室效應
Croatian All hrvatski Run now Učinak staklenika
Czech All čeština Run now Skleníkový efekt
Danish All Dansk Run now Drivhuseffekten
Dutch All Nederlands Run now Het broeikaseffect
Estonian All Eesti Run now Kasvuhooneefekt
Finnish All suomi Run now Kasvihuoneilmiö
French All français Run now L'effet de serre
Galician All Gallegan Run now Efecto Invernadoiro
German All Deutsch Run now Der Treibhauseffekt
Greek All Ελληνικά Run now Το Φαινόμενο του Θερμοκηπίου
Hebrew All עברית Run now אפקט החממה
Hungarian All magyar Run now Üvegházhatás
Italian All italiano Run now Effetto Serra
Japanese All 日本語 Run now 大気の温室効果
Kannada All Kannada Run now ಹಸಿರು ಮನೆ ಪರಿಣಾಮ
Khmer All Khmer Run now ផល​ផ្ទះ​កញ្ចក់
Korean All 한국어 Run now 온실 효과
Macedonian All македонски Run now Ефект на стаклена градина
Malay All Bahasa Melayu Run now Kesan Rumahijau
Norwegian Bokmal All Norsk bokmål Run now Drivhuseffekten
Persian All فارسی Run now اثر گلخانه ای
Polish All polski Run now Efekt cieplarniany
Portuguese All português Run now O Efeito de Estufa
Portuguese (Brazil) All português (Brasil) Run now O Efeito Estufa
Serbian All Српски Run now ЕФЕКАТ СТАКЛЕНЕ БАШТЕ
Slovak All Slovenčina Run now Skleníkový efekt
Spanish All español Run now El Efecto de Invernadero
Spanish (Peru) All español (Perú) Run now El Efecto Invernadero
Spanish (Spain) All español (España) Run now El efecto invernadero
Swedish All svenska Run now Växthuseffekten
Thai All ไทย Run now ปรากฎการณ์เรือนกระจก
Turkish All Türkçe Run now Sera Etkisi
Turkmen All Turkmen Run now Parnik effekty (Ýer şaryň gyzmagy)
Ukrainian All українська Run now The Greenhouse Effect
Vietnamese All Tiếng Việt Run now Hiệu ứng nhà kính

Software Requirements

Windows Macintosh Linux
Microsoft Windows
XP/Vista/7
Sun Java 1.5.0_15 or later
OS 10.5 or later
Sun Java 1.5.0_19 or later
Sun Java 1.5.0_15 or later

Credits

Design Team Third-party Libraries Thanks To
  • Wendy Adams
  • John Blanco (developer)
  • Kelly Lancaster
  • Ron LeMaster (developer)
  • Trish Loeblein
  • Robert Parson
  • Kathy Perkins
  • Carl Wieman
  • Interviewer: Wendy Adams
  • Interviewer: Danielle Harlow
  • Interviewer: Kelly Lancaster
  • Piccolo2D
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