What else affects the Earth's climate?

Because there are so many other factors that affect the climate other than human actions, it can be beneficial to group them based on whether they help warm or cool the Earth. These factors are also known as "forcings." If a forcing helps warm the Earth, it is a positive forcing. This includes things such as solar flares and sun spots, volcanic activity, and the release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere such as the burning of fossil fuels. A negative forcing then helps cool the Earth. One of the major negative forcings is the polar ice caps, which reflect a lot of solar radiation back towards space. As the Earth continues to warm, the ice caps are beginning to melt and break apart, increasing how quickly the Earth warms. Other negative forcings include actions that decrease the concentration of Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, such as reforestation. The new plants take CO2 out of the atmosphere and return oxygen. A major factor is the Earth's albedo, or how well it reflects solar emissions. With the melting of the ice caps, the Earth's overall albedo is decreasing, allowing the Earth to warm at an increasing rate.