Wildfires burn on the island of Evia, north of Athens, Greece, on Aug. 3, 2021, as the country dealt with the worst heat wave in decades. Temperatures reached 41 C in parts of Athens.
(AP Photo/Michael Pappas)
The latest report on climate science comes on the heels of heatwaves, wildfires, flooding and storms. It will help policy-makers act on plans to curb emissions or adapt to climate change.
The Sun over Earth, seen from the International Space Station.
NASA
When heat in doesn’t equal heat out, Earth sees changes.
Scientists have been consistently documenting environmental changes at research sites like this one in the Cascade Mountains for decades.
US Forest Service
Humanity can still limit global warming to 1.5°C this century. But political action will determine whether it actually does. Conflating the two questions amounts to dangerous, misplaced punditry.
To limit warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, we’ll need to cut global emissions by 7.6% each year this decade. It’s difficult, but not impossible.
Greenland’s ice sheet suffered major melting in July 2019, dumping billions of tons of meltwater into the Atlantic Ocena.
Jennifer Latuperisa-Andresen/Unsplash
The UN body responsible for communicating the science of climate breakdown has released its long-awaited report on how we’re changing our ice and oceans. In a nutshell, the news isn’t good.
Warmer temperatures could lead to more zones of the country that make good breeding sites for mosquitoes.
Apichart Meesri / Shutterstock.com
Is our changing climate making regions of the US more suitable for ticks and mosquitoes that spread diseases? Or is the climate changing human physiology making us more vulnerable?
A farm in LaSalle County, Illinois.
Eddie J. Rodriquez/shutterstock.com
Conservative skeptics of climate change may support projects focused on ‘resilience’ – for example, preparing a community for future major weather events.
Energy Secretary and former Texas Gov. Rick Perry checks out a wind turbine.
AP Photo/LM Otero
There are some good explanations for the mismatch between regional support for climate action and the areas where renewable energy is making the biggest inroads.
A man walks through a greenhouse in northeastern Uganda where sustainable agriculture techniques such as drought-resistant crops and tree planting are taught, Oct. 19, 2017.
AP Photo/Adelle Kalakouti
After declining for nearly a decade, the number of hungry people in the world is growing again. Climate change, which is disrupting weather patterns that farmers rely on, is a major cause.
Deadly debris flows came to Los Angeles after heavy rain pounded wildfire-scarred land.
AP Photo/Reed Saxon
One natural disaster can exacerbate the effects of others – think landslides after wildfires. This means engineers and planners need to rethink how they assess and prepare for risk.
Miami is investing hundreds of millions of dollars to raise roads in response to rising sea levels.
AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee
Infrastructure systems – roads, water treatment systems, power grid – can’t be built the same ways as in the past. What’s a better roadmap for the future?
High school students at the University of Maine Farmington’s Upward Bound program playing the World Climate simulation.
Mary Sinclair
In the ‘World Climate’ simulation, people play delegates to UN climate negotiations and work to strike an agreement that meets global climate goals. Playing it has made thousands want to take action.
Members of a ground crew In Phoenix wrapped wet towels around their necks to cool off when the temperature reached a record of 116°F.
Matt York/AP Photo
Rising temperatures will not only hurt people in the future. Many are feeling the effects now. Those who work outdoors, those who have certain chronic conditions and the elderly are vulnerable.
Damage from Hurricane Michael and other storms may lead to higher insurance premiums.
Reuters/Terray Sylvester
Convincing people to see and appreciate the threats posed by climate change is one of the great challenges of our day. Insurers may be able to succeed where scientists and educators have failed.
2016’s warm winter meant not enough snow for the start of the Iditarod sled dog race in Anchorage, so it was brought by train from 360 miles north.
AP/Rachel D'Oro
For everyone from traditional hunters to the military, the National Park Service to the oil industry, climate change is the new reality in Alaska. Government, residents and businesses are all trying to adapt.
Bioenergy Carbon Capture and Sequestration, known as BECCS, is one of the technologies we may need to limit warming to 1.5 degrees.
from www.shutterstock.com
Delays on climate action to reduce emissions means that we may have to consider technologies that strip carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. But that will come at a cost.
There’s a bridge over this Michigan waterway and a precarious pipeline beneath it.
AP Photo/Al Goldis
A big spill in Michigan’s Straits of Mackinac could have devastating consequences. But does replacing the pipeline running beneath it make sense in a warming world?
Professor of Management & Organizations; Professor of Environment & Sustainability; Professor of Sustainable Enterprise at the Ross School of Business and School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan
Chief Investigator, ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes; Chief Investigator, ARC Securing Antarctica's Environmental Future; Professor, Monash University