The green house effect affects many aspects of our lives here our planet Earth. Without the green house effect, our planet's climate would be considerably cold and frigid. The climate here on earth has changed due to human activities that effect the chemical composition of the atmosphere through the increase of greenhouse gases - primarily carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. The earth has been around for about 4.65 billion years and has had its climate change from hot to cold many times. The average surface temperature of earth presently is about 15°C (59°F).