There are many books on global warming written entirely from a layman's perspective, and there is a great deal of scientific literature on this subject. But few if any books attempt to bridge the science to those who lack a rigorous background in mathematics, physics and chemistry-but who may be working on careers in environmental science and policy. The new text is designed to introduce the field of global climate change from a scientific perspective-but written in a way that is accessible to students with some or little science background. It reviews the basic principles of climatic thermodynamics and atmospheric chemistry and then goes on to explain historic trends and changes due to the burning of fossil fuels and other human-based activity on earth.
Sea surface temperature imagery via NASA Scientific Visualization Studio: http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3652, accessed June 2016.
