Which one of the following statements is true with regard to a greenhouse ?

A greenhouse operates on the principle of selective transparency of glass to different wavelengths of radiation. Glass is transparent to incoming short-wavelength solar radiation, which includes visible light and near-infrared radiation from the Sun [5]. Once this radiation enters the greenhouse, it is absorbed by the ground and plants, which then re-emit the energy as long-wavelength (thermal) infrared radiation [4]. Unlike the incoming short-wave radiation, glass is largely opaque to this outgoing long-wave radiation, effectively trapping the heat inside [1]. While modern physics notes that the suppression of convection (preventing warm air from escaping) is a major factor in actual greenhouses, the radiative mechanism described—where short-wave infrared enters but long-wave infrared is blocked—remains the standard scientific explanation for the 'greenhouse effect' analogy [1].

Sources

1. [1] FUNDAMENTALS OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY, Geography Class XI (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 11: World Climate and Climate Change > Global Warming > p. 96
2. [5] FUNDAMENTALS OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY, Geography Class XI (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 8: Solar Radiation, Heat Balance and Temperature > The Passage of Solar Radiation through the Atmosphere > p. 68
3. [2] Environment and Ecology, Majid Hussain (Access publishing 3rd ed.) > Chapter 6: Environmental Degradation and Management > Greenhouse Effect and Global Warming > p. 7
4. [3] Environment, Shankar IAS Acedemy .(ed 10th) > Chapter 17: Climate Change > Role of Greenhouse Gases > p. 255
5. [4] Science ,Class VIII . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 13: Our Home: Earth, a Unique Life Sustaining Planet > A step further > p. 214