If you experience any technical difficulties with this video or would like to make an accessibility-related request, please send a message to [email protected]. Absorption of incoming solar energy acts to heat a planet and its atmosphere. For the planet to maintain a constant temperature, this heating must be offset by an equal amount of cooling. This is accomplished by the emission of thermal radiation by the planet and the loss of this energy into outer space. The exchange of energy between the atmosphere and the planet’s surface is a complicating factor that leads to temperatures warmer than would otherwise exist. In this talk, John Frederick explains how emissions affect this process and what it means for the earth’s climate in the future.