Score: 0
Joules: 120
Time: 90
Catch the right IR bands. Keep the planet in the green zone!
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About Infrared Traffic

Route greenhouse gases and keep the planet's heat budget stable in this free online climate game about the greenhouse effect.

Infrared Traffic is a free online greenhouse effect game where you manage Earth's radiation budget as a photon traffic controller. Sunlight streams down, the warm surface glows infrared back up and your job is placing gas molecules that catch the right wavelengths. The goal is not to block everything or let everything escape: it is to hold the planet in a habitable Goldilocks balance.

Every mechanic maps to real atmospheric physics. Solar photons are shortwave visible light that greenhouse gases cannot absorb, so they pass freely to the ground. The surface re-radiates that energy as longwave infrared. Each gas only catches specific absorption bands set by its vibrational modes: CO₂'s bending mode grabs the deep-red band near 15 micrometers, water vapor's stretching and rotation bands grab the orange band and methane sits near the 8 to 12 micrometer atmospheric window where Earth's glow normally escapes unfiltered. Nitrogen and oxygen are useless in the game for a real reason: symmetric two-atom molecules cannot change their dipole moment when they vibrate, so infrared photons ignore them completely. When a molecule absorbs a photon it re-emits it in a random direction, not like a blanket bouncing heat back, which is why roughly half the trapped energy returns to the surface.

This matters because the same physics runs the real planet. Without any greenhouse gases Earth would average about -18°C and freeze solid; with too much trapping the climate overheats. Scientists track the imbalance directly with satellites like NASA's CERES and see rising CO₂ in the Keeling Curve, while the Montreal Protocol proved we can act by banning super-potent CFCs.

Key Science Concepts

What You'll Learn

Grade Level: Middle School, High School

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How to play

  1. Harvest Sunlight Solar photons land on the ground, earn Joules and get re-emitted as rising infrared photons.
  2. Place Gases Pick a gas in the tray, then tap the sky to drop a molecule. Tap a placed molecule to remove it for a refund.
  3. Match the Bands CO₂ catches deep-red bend IR, water vapor catches orange stretch IR. N₂ catches nothing at all!
  4. Guard the Window Cyan window photons slip right past CO₂ and water vapor. Only methane or CFCs can catch them.
  5. Cool on Demand Albedo clouds bounce sunlight straight back to space. Your cooling lever when things get toasty.
  6. Hold the Green Zone Keep surface temp in the green band for 90 seconds. Tap the temp gauge for an emergency climate burst.

Frequently asked questions

Is Infrared Traffic free to play?
Yes. Infrared Traffic is completely free to play in your browser. There is no download, install or account needed.
What grade level is Infrared Traffic for?
Infrared Traffic is designed for Middle School, High School students and works well as a classroom activity or homework.
Does Infrared Traffic work on phones and tablets?
Yes. Infrared Traffic runs in any modern browser on desktop computers, Chromebooks, tablets and phones in landscape mode.

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