A greenhouse gas (sometimes abbreviated GHG) is a gas in an atmosphere that absorbs and emits radiation within the thermal infrared range. The primary greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere are water vapour, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. Nitrous oxide (N2O) gas should not be confused with nitric oxide (NO) or nitrogen dioxide (NO2). Neither nitric oxide nor nitrogen dioxide is greenhouse gases, although they are important in the process of creation of tropospheric ozone which is a greenhouse gas. There are several sources of nitrous oxide, both natural and anthropogenic (human), to the atmosphere with many of these sources difficult to measure. Because of this, there is general agreement that the atmospheric sources and sinks of nitrous oxide are difficult to bring into balance.