Final answer:
Global warming is the rise in Earth's average temperature due to increased greenhouse gases, while climate change refers to a broader spectrum of changes affecting the planet's climate system over several decades or longer.
Step-by-step explanation:
Climate change and global warming are terms that are often used interchangeably, but they have distinct meanings. Global warming refers specifically to the recent and ongoing rise in global average temperature near Earth's surface, primarily due to increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. This increase in greenhouse gases is largely attributed to human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation, leading to the enhanced greenhouse effect.
Climate change, on the other hand, encompasses not only global warming but also the broader range of changes occurring in our planet's climate system. These include major changes in temperature, precipitation, wind patterns, and other related effects that manifest over several decades or longer. Global warming is thus a driver of climate change, which results in a variety of impacts on global weather patterns, storm activity, sea levels, and overall planetary conditions.