Final answer:
Greenhouse gases trap heat in the Earth's atmosphere, contributing to global warming.
Step-by-step explanation:
Greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor, nitrous oxide, and ozone, influence the heat flow into and out of Earth's atmosphere, contributing to the phenomenon of global warming. When heat energy from the sun strikes the Earth, greenhouse gases trap the heat in the atmosphere, similar to how the glass panes of a greenhouse keep heat from escaping. These gases absorb and emit radiation, reflecting much of the thermal energy back to the Earth's surface. As a result, the more greenhouse gases there are in the atmosphere, the more thermal energy is reflected back, heating up the Earth's surface and the atmosphere immediately above it.