Scientists have been seeing and quantifying progressive warming of the planet's temperature for more than a century, but global public opinion has realized the phenomenon and its implications for the survival of our current way of life just a few years ago. Successive international conferences convened by the United Nations to deal with the consequences of this climate change have so far produced, as we know, very modest results. On the other hand, there is still no widespread agreement in the scientific community on how much of this global warming is due to natural causes and how much to man's action, which does not contribute to political consensus among those responsible for global governance. This book addresses the phenomenon of climate change from very clearly defined methodological and disciplinary approaches, resulting in an honest, solid and enriching account.