Final answer:
Climate change, as we understand it today, was first recognized scientifically in the late 20th century when it became evident that human activities, particularly fossil fuel burning, were influencing global climate. The term 'global warming' emerged in the late 1980s, and by the early 21st century, there was a strong scientific consensus on the role of human actions in driving climate change.
Step-by-step explanation:
The recognition of climate change and the understanding of its causes have been the result of scientific inquiry over many years. Early scientific evidence of climate changes predates human civilization and includes phenomena like ice ages and minor events such as the Little Ice Age. Much of the natural climate variability in Earth's history can be attributed to factors like changes in solar intensity, volcanic eruptions, and natural shifts in greenhouse gas concentrations. However, the rapid climatic shifts witnessed since the Industrial Revolution are largely attributed to human activities, primarily the burning of fossil fuels, which adds to the atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases like CO₂ and exacerbates the greenhouse effect.
When and by whom was climate change first discovered? Although changes in the Earth's climate had been observed and recorded throughout history, the concept that humans could be influencing the climate on a global scale began to take hold in the scientific community in the late 20th century. The term 'global warming' started to enter the public consciousness during the late 1980s, and since then, the scientific consensus has become clear that human activities are influencing our planet's climate. This was further documented in the article "The Physical Science behind Climate Change" by Collins, W., et al., published in the Scientific American in August 2007.