This is the story of how we discovered the planet was warming, and why. The climate crisis is caused by a build up of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere, which traps energy and raises the planet’s average temperature.

This was discovered over the course of 200 years by a large cast of chemists, physicists, geologists, and other scientists.

Some of them you may know, such as Joseph Fourier and Charles Keeling, but many of them are less well known.

This video tells the remarkable story of men and women like Eunice Foote, Roger Revelle, Guy Callendar, and James Croll. But there’s still more to be told! If you would like to see part 2 of the story, focusing on the 1970s, 80s, and 90s, let me know in the comments.