What is the timing between carbon dioxide (CO2) or methane (CH4) emissions and their maximum atmospheric temperature impact? It turns out that is not an easy question to answer because there are many variables to consider.
One recent study pegged that a maximum warming response from an emission source takes between 6.6 and 30.7 years.
If true, it means the consequences of emitting CO2 or CH4 can be measured in the short term, and fully felt in terms of atmospheric warming within the generation responsible for it. This means that tracing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to an emitter should be possible for legal purposes. It also means that the emissions window is very short in terms of doing measurable climate change damage. Finally, for those seeking climate change mitigation, it means global warming counter strategies can be implemented much faster and achieve near-immediate results.