The World Meteorological Organisation published the Atlas of mortality and economic losses from weather, climate and water extremes (1970–2012) on July 11, 2014. The Atlas summarizes the global impacts of the last four decades, based on extreme events such as droughts, extreme temperatures, floods, tropical cyclones and related health epidemics, and the related economic losses. From 1970 to 2012, 8835 disasters,…
Video credit: Andy Jacobson, CIRES/NOAA In 2013, Greenhouse gases continued to rise, 34 percent increase since 1990 NOAA reported in May 2014, about greenhouse gas observations, based on the Annual Greenhouse Gas Index (AGGI). Findings show that greenhouse gasses keep rising, a trend observed since the Industrial Revolution (1880s) and has accelerated in recent decades. The main contributor…
By Laura Naranjo (NSIDC), first published January 31, 2014. In the following an edited version, reposted here with permission. Antarctic sea ice is ruled by very different systems than Arctic sea ice. The reasons behind this increase are complex, and several recent studies show that scientists are still trying to understand them. Ice and wind Atmospheric…
The study, Energy investments under climate policy: A comparison of global models, published in the journal Climate Change Economics (DOI: 10.1142/S2010007813400101 | 2013) explored global energy spending and concluded that low-carbon energy and energy efficiency investments of about 1.1 trillion annually are required, to meet the emissions reduction targets to keep the world below 2°C. In context, additional $0.8…
NASA/JPL press release, May 12, 2014: A new study by researchers at NASA and the University of California, Irvine, finds a rapidly melting section of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet appears to be in an irreversible state of decline, with nothing to stop the glaciers in this area from melting into the sea. The study presents…
Introduction to Methane Hydrate “Methane Hydrates and Contemporary Climate Change” (2011) IDENTIFICATION This post “A Mechanism for Shallow Methane Hydrate Dissociation”, explores possible mechanism which could release vast quantities of shallow Methane Hydrate into the ocean and atmosphere. CH4 Release The following studies explore the release of CH4 emissions in the Arctic region. OBSERVATION…
You can’t understand climate change in pieces, says climate scientist Gavin Schmidt. It’s the whole, or it’s nothing. In this illuminating talk, he explains how he studies the big picture of climate change with mesmerizing models that illustrate the endlessly complex interactions of small-scale environmental events. You can’t understand climate change in pieces, says climate…
A new massive report on global warming says dangers will worsen as the climate changes. Related IPCC Climate Change Report The Five Key Points IPCC Report: Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis IPCC Report: Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability New York Times: Climate Study Puts Diplomatic Pressure on Obama
The Guardian recently summarized the five keypoints of the new IPCC AR5 Impact Report. The world faces threat to food supply, conflicts over water rights and growing inequality. The only option to is cut emissions By Suzanne Goldenberg (The Guardian): 1. Food threat Climate change is already taking a sizeable chunk out of global food supply…