Global warming is one of the most dangerous threats faced by humanity in the near future. The rise of world temperature beyond 2 degrees could have catastrophic consequences for the life on the planet.

This is why scientists are working hard to study and control global climate fluctuations throughout time. Measuring the amount of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere is important because these gases (vapour, carbon dioxide, ozone, methane and nitrous oxide) allow sunlight to enter the atmosphere absorbing and trapping "infrared" radiation from the sun and thus keeping the atmosphere warm. This is the natural greenhouse effect and there is nothing wrong with it.

The problem comes when a higher amount of carbon dioxide sent to the atmosphere mainly through industrial pollution (the burning of fussil fuels) causes the Earth's temperature to rise to levels that make life unsuitable. This is beginning to happen. Scientists need to calculate the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere by analysisng the ice in the Antarctica and Greenland. Why? Because snow contains lots of air that has been compacted in the ice throughout the years. These bubble of air are like atmospheric "texts" through which scientists can "read" what was the atmosphere like thousands of years ago and thus calculate changes in temperature.