The Basics
Earths main source of heat comes from the sun, which is the most important factor in heating the earth. The atmosphere is the second factor in heating the earth. All of this heat is kept inside of the atmosphere by the greenhouse effect. The main greenhouse gasses are argon and carbon dioxide. Without this greenhouse effect, all the heat from the earth would get lost in space. Heat is transferred in three different ways, conduction, convection, and radiation.