Scientists say they've made the first direct observations confirming an increasing greenhouse effect at the Earth's surface caused by carbon dioxide.

The finding confirms in nature what has already been predicted by computer models and seen in laboratory experiments that continued emissions of carbon dioxide are warming the surface of the Earth.

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In a study led by the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, scientists found that CO2 was responsible for an increase of 0.2 Watts per square meter over the course of a decade. Not surprisingly, the study blamed the rise on fossil fuel emissions.

The increase in CO2 by emerging economies resulted in record high emissions in 2013, with 35.3 billion tons of carbon dioxide dumped into the atmosphere from both fossil fuel use and the production of cement, according to two international agencies that study the issue.

"We're actually measuring the fact that rising carbon dioxide concentrations are leading to the greenhouse effect. This is clear observational evidence that when we add carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, it will push the system to a warmer place," says study lead author Dan Feldman at California's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

To make their observations, the team used spectroscopic instruments from the Atmosphere Radiation Measurement Climate Research Facility. They also used two other instruments to observe the CO2 contribution to heat by removing heat from clouds and water vapor.

The finding is the first direct confirmation of the impact atmospheric CO2 has on the balance between the energy coming in from the Sun and the outgoing heat from the Earth.

The new study was published in the journal Nature.

Tagscarbon dioxide, CO2, greenhouse effect, global warming, Earth surface