What are global warming potentials?

Global warming potentials tell us how much heat different gases trap in the Earth’s atmosphere compared to each other.

Imagine you're playing with two types of blankets, one is a regular blanket, and the other is a super thick, fluffy one. The regular blanket keeps you warm, but the fluffy one keeps you super warm. That's like how different gases work: some trap more heat than others.

Think of carbon dioxide (CO₂) as that regular blanket, it’s common and traps a moderate amount of heat. But methane (CH₄), which comes from cows or landfills, is like the fluffy blanket, it traps way more heat than CO₂ does.

Global warming potential is like a scorecard: it gives each gas a number that tells us how good it is at trapping heat over time. Methane gets a higher score because it’s better at trapping heat for a while, even though it doesn’t last as long in the air as CO₂.

So when scientists talk about global warming potentials, they're helping us understand which gases are the biggest heat-trappers, and that helps us decide how to reduce the Earth's warmth.