[justa-hairyape]

While the basic premise of global warming has a solid basis in fundamental physical chemistry -- that carbon-containing gases trap sunlight, turning it into heat -- a great unknown is how the Earth will respond to this heating by increasing levels of atmospheric carbon.

Not exactly. The % of absorption of light capability from CO2 gas has a logarithmic response that weakens under higher concentrations of CO2 gas. So eventually you reach a saturation point where higher CO2 levels mean no more absorption or no more warming. We are close to that saturation point now, which explains why temperatures have not risen the past 16 years, while CO2 gas concentrations have increased.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Jason needs to spent more time reading at WUWT.

[Elsiejay]

It is not absorption of incident short wave solar radiation by CO2 that heats the air, but rather absorption of long wave back radiation.
I’m not any kind of a physical chemist, but is it not the case (1) that CO2 absorbs long wave back radiation in only limited portions of the radiation spectrum, and (2) that the long wave absorption capacity of CO2 is rather easily saturated?
Also involved in the heating process is the efficiency of heat transfer from CO2 molecules to other components of the atmosphere.