Global warming potential

**Global Warming Potential (GWP) Overview:**
– GWP is an index measuring radiative forcing relative to carbon dioxide.
– It allows comparison of greenhouse gases based on their effectiveness in causing radiative forcing.
– GWP values vary based on greenhouse gas efficiency and atmospheric lifetime.
– Different gases have varying GWPs over 20, 100, and 500-year timescales.
– Methane’s GWP changes over different time periods due to its atmospheric lifetime.

**Calculation and Application of GWP:**
– GWP is calculated based on the radiative forcing of different greenhouse gases.
– GWP values are compared to the warming effect of carbon dioxide.
– CO2 equivalent (CO2e) is calculated from the GWP of a gas for a common scale of measurement.
– GWP values are used to calculate the equivalent mass of CO2 for each gas.
– GWP values should be referenced due to uncertainties in gas concentration decay over time.

**Use in International Agreements and Reporting:**
– The Kyoto Protocol standardized international reporting using GWP values from IPCC.
– New sets of 100-year GWP values have been adopted periodically.
– IPCC reports are used for international comparisons and emission reports for consistency.
– GWP estimations with climate-carbon feedback have been introduced in the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report.
– GWP values are crucial for reporting to the UNFCCC and for global climate agreements.

**Other Metrics for Comparing Greenhouse Gases:**
– Global Temperature Potential (GTP) represents the temperature change potential of a greenhouse gas.
– Carbon dioxide removal potential (CDRP) measures a gas’s potential to be removed from the atmosphere.
– Carbon dioxide capture potential (CDCP) measures a gas’s potential to be captured and stored.
– Global Warming Level (GWL) represents the level of warming caused by a gas.
– Atmospheric Lifetime (AL) measures how long a gas remains in the atmosphere.

**Scientific Research and Reports on GWP:**
– Studies on methane emissions impact, radiative forcing models, and greenhouse gas lifetimes.
– Research on global temperature goals, emission time horizons, and climate impacts of energy technologies.
– Reports on methane radiative forcing revision, greenhouse gas radiative forcing, and carbon accounting.
– Investigations into the implications of excluding short-lived emissions and the warming-equivalent emissions reporting.
– Analysis of GWP* as a model and the application of new emissions metrics in climate change impact studies.