Atmosphere of Earth. Composition of Earth's atmosphere by volume.
The lower pie represents the trace gases which together compose 0.038% of the atmosphere. The numbers are from a variety of years (mainly 1987, with CO2 and methane from 2009) and do not represent any single source. The common name given to the atmospheric gases used in breathing and photosynthesis is air. By volume, dry air contains 78.09% nitrogen, 20.95% oxygen,[1] 0.93% argon, 0.039% carbon dioxide, and small amounts of other gases. What are the main sources of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions? There are both natural and human sources of carbon dioxide emissions.
Natural sources include decomposition, ocean release and respiration. Human sources come from activities like cement production, deforestation as well as the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas. Due to human activities, the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide has been rising extensively since the Industrial Revolution and has now reached dangerous levels not seen in the last 3 million years. Human sources of carbon dioxide emissions are much smaller than natural emissions but they have upset the natural balance that existed for many thousands of years before the influence of humans. Seismic Monitor. Earth view from outer space. Stunning View of Lyrids and Earth at Night. Earth.