Fermi resonance and the quantum mechanical basis of global warming

Wordsworth, R. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1127-8334, Seeley, J. T. and Shine, K. P. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2672-9978 (2024) Fermi resonance and the quantum mechanical basis of global warming. The Planetary Science Journal, 5 (3). 67. ISSN 2632-3338 doi: 10.3847/PSJ/ad226d

Abstract/Summary

Although the scientific principles of anthropogenic climate change are well-established, existing calculations of the warming effect of carbon dioxide rely on spectral absorption databases, which obscures the physical foundations of the climate problem. Here, we show how CO2 radiative forcing can be expressed via a first-principles description of the molecule’s key vibrational-rotational transitions. Our analysis elucidates the dependence of carbon dioxide’s effectiveness as a greenhouse gas on the Fermi resonance between the symmetric stretch mode ν1 and bending mode ν2 . It is remarkable that an apparently accidental quantum resonance in an otherwise ordinary three-atom molecule has had such a large impact on our planet’s climate over geologic time, and will also help determine its future warming due to human activity. In addition to providing a simple explanation of CO2 radiative forcing on Earth, our results may have implications for understanding radiation and climate on other planets.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/115815
Identification Number/DOI	10.3847/PSJ/ad226d
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Science > School of Mathematical, Physical and Computational Sciences > Department of Meteorology
Publisher	American Astronomical Society
Download/View statistics	View download statistics for this item