All posts tagged: global warming

We now know how much global warming has delayed the next ice age

We now know how much global warming has delayed the next ice age

Published by skeptic

Earth during a glacial period Zoonar/Alexander Savchuk/Alamy Without human-induced climate change, Earth may have been on track to plunge into another glacial period within 11,000 years. This long-term forecast of the planet’s “natural” climate is based on a new analysis of how wobbles in the shape of its orbit and the tilt of its axis combine to change the amount of solar energy reaching the planet. For millions of years, these orbital oscillations – known as Milankovitch cycles – brought the planet in and out of glacial periods about every 41,000 years. But the past 800,000 years have seen these glacial cycles, also known as ice ages, occur only every 100,000 years or so. The term ice age can be used to refer to any time there was ice at Earth’s poles, as there is now, though it is also commonly means periods of widespread glaciation. Ambiguities in the record of when ice sheets advanced and retreated meant it wasn’t possible to explain how orbital changes were involved in driving this longer cycle, a mystery …

The European country set to lose the most ‘outdoor days’ | World | News

The European country set to lose the most ‘outdoor days’ | World | News

Published by skeptic

Climate change is set to deprive millions of people around the world of several days of pleasant weather if the current trend of rising temperature continues, a study has suggested. To raise awareness of the long-term impact on the planet an increase in global temperatures of 1.5C or 2C will have, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed a way to provide a vivid image of the real-life consequences of the climate crisis. The experts, part of the Eltahir Research Group, analysed data from 50 different climate models and charted how the number of “outdoor days” in various destinations around the world will decrease or grow by 2100. The researcher defined “outdoor day” a period of 24 hours during which temperatures are pleasant enough for most people to enjoy outdoor activities like walking, cycling and travelling. Scientists determined that temperatures during “outdoor days” can range between 10C and 25C, with no extreme weather events.  In a scenario in which the global focus remains on using fossil fuels and carrying out indiscriminate development …

Old-fashioned pessimism might actually help us fight climate change

Old-fashioned pessimism might actually help us fight climate change

Published by skeptic

Pessimism is a dirty word in climate policy circles. There are good reasons for this, not least that optimism can spur positive change, while assuming the worst can paralyse us into inaction. But when it comes to climate modelling, some negative thinking could be a good thing. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change already hedges its bets with a range of models, or pathways, that assess how we might limit warming to 1.5°C, or see carbon emissions continue unabated, or experience many possibilities in between. These pathways are underpinned by thousands of scientific papers, reams of data and the brains of the world’s climate scientists, but, like all models, they are also built on assumptions. One key assumption in scenarios that keep us below 1.5°C of warming is that, in the near future, we will rapidly perfect technologies that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This isn’t an unreasonable prediction, given human ingenuity and the strong incentives for doing so. But including carbon capture technologies in these models is a bit like declaring you will …

Expect financial fallout when the fossil fuel bubble finally bursts

Expect financial fallout when the fossil fuel bubble finally bursts

Published by skeptic

Climate change — and the lack of timely, consistent action to address it — is driving the world toward a new financial crisis. Indeed, senior regulators are increasingly warning that this will cause a collapse similar to the 2008 Great Recession. The head of the European Environment Agency recently warned that the European Union is at a “higher and higher” risk of systemic financial shock as the planet warms up. This follows similar alerts from U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, President of the European Central Bank Christine Lagarde and Mark Carney, former governor of the Bank of England — as well as from financial experts at the London School of Economics’ Grantham Institute. The danger is of a major “Minsky Moment” — a sudden and catastrophic plunge in asset values following a period of growth and stability. It takes its name from the economist Hyman Minsky, who understood that market optimism with inadequate regulation could push key assets like fossil fuels into a bubble of unjustified valuations. When these are corrected, investors would be stranded with insufficient returns, as we saw in 2008.  …

We can’t get to net zero without tackling inequality

We can’t get to net zero without tackling inequality

Published by skeptic

Planes at Las Vegas airport Frank Nowikowski/Alamy I recently had to replace the hot water system in my house. It cost a small fortune. I’m fortunate enough to be able to afford it, but I couldn’t go to the next level, a heat pump. My carbon footprint will be lowered by my new boiler, but it won’t be where I want it to be: zero. If I can’t afford it, god only knows how the majority of people ever will. But there are those living not far from me who could buy a heat pump for every house in… Source link

Sperm counts fall as temperatures rise, new research suggests

Sperm counts fall as temperatures rise, new research suggests

Published by skeptic

Speaking to the Telegraph, Dr Gunther said the study was the first to look at the impact of heat on fertility in tropical regions – where temperatures remain high all year round and fluctuations are milder than in seasonal climates like the UK.  “That we still found detrimental impacts during key exposure periods suggests that it might not take much fluctuation in temperature to damage sperm health,” he said. “This study demonstrates how environmental exposure such as high ambient temperature and heat stress can impact male fertility, and signals us to pursue the link further.” The study is part of the National University of Singapore’s Project HeatSafe programme, which is exploring the consequences of extreme heat on different elements of society. As well as looking at male sperm counts, the researchers tracked the birth records of more than 30,000 mothers, and found that avoiding extreme heat during the third trimester of a pregnancy was associated with a lower risk of premature births.  This comes after researchers at the Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and …

Joe Biden and Donald Trump Have Thoughts About Your Next Car

Joe Biden and Donald Trump Have Thoughts About Your Next Car

Published by skeptic

Get ready for the EV election. Doug Mills / The New York Times / Redux March 20, 2024, 6:32 PM ET The Biden administration earlier today issued a major new rule intended to spur the country’s electric-vehicle industry and slash future sales of new gas-powered cars. The rule is not a ban on gas cars, nor does it mandate electric-vehicle sales. It is a new emissions standard, requiring automakers to cut the average carbon emission of their fleets by nearly 50 percent by 2032. It would speed up the transformation of the car industry: The simplest way for automakers to cut emissions will likely be to shift more of their fleets to electric and hybrid models, and the Biden administration estimates that the rule would result in electric vehicles making up as much as half of all new cars sold by 2032. It also gives the country more of a chance of meeting the administration’s goal of cutting U.S. emissions in half by 2030 and eliminating them by 2050. The final rule is a less …

Scientists issue urgent warning as Arctic could be ‘ice-free’ within the next 10 years | World | News

Scientists issue urgent warning as Arctic could be ‘ice-free’ within the next 10 years | World | News

Published by skeptic

Scientists have issued an urgent warning that the Arctic could be left with no ice within the next 10 years as a result of global warming. Arctic sea ice naturally shrinks in summer and freezes over again in the winter but now ice is melting more in the summer and freezing back smaller in the winter according to scientists from the University of Colorado Boulder. They say ice could dissipate by about 25 percent eventually leading up to the Arctic’s first-ever ice-free month happening within this decade. This would then lead to oceans heating up more quickly, melting more of the ice caps and contributing to heatwaves on land. Normally sea ice is at its smallest point in mid-September before it then re-freezes in winter in normal annual changes in the Arctic. But now NASA says both summer and winter ice is getting smaller, with the Arctic recording its sixth-lowest minimum ice extent since NASA started tracking it with satellites in September 2023. Decreasing ice is not a new trend, with NASA noticing it since …

The world just experienced the hottest February on record

The world just experienced the hottest February on record

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Chile experienced a severe wildfire earlier this year ZUMA Press, Inc. / Alamy The planet just experienced the hottest February on record, with global average temperature rising 1.77°C above the pre-industrial average for the month, according to a bulletin from the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S). That makes it the ninth month in a row to set a monthly heat record. “As remarkable as this might appear, it is not really surprising as the continuous warming of the climate system inevitably leads to new temperature extremes,” said Carlo Buontempo at C3S in a statement. Europe saw particularly anomalous heat in February, with average temperatures rising 3.3°C above the monthly average for 1991 to 2020. High temperatures and dry weather also drove fires in North and South America, including the deadliest wildfire in Chile’s history, and conditions were unusually warm across much of the rest of the world’s land masses. The ocean heat was even more extreme, with average global sea surface temperature in February edging out August 2023 for the hottest month at …

Stark mountain landscapes exposed in Canada as glaciers shrink

Stark mountain landscapes exposed in Canada as glaciers shrink

Published by skeptic

THIS frigid scene in the Coast mountains in British Columbia, Canada, is a sight to behold – but enjoy it while you can as it may not be like this for much longer. When snow falls in places like this, it becomes compacted into thick ice that flows over the land and forms a glacier, creating giant reservoirs of water that sustain life when melting occurs. These are an ancient and vital resource. The process of glaciation has been happening throughout most of Earth’s history. But many of these icy relics are at risk of being lost, says photographer and artist Edward Burtynsky. That is the message behind this photo, on display in the New Works exhibition at the Flowers Gallery in London from 28 February until 6 April. Burtynsky took the shot from a helicopter and was shocked to see that the glaciers had receded dramatically compared with 20 years ago, when he last visited. The glaciers in this range date as far back as 150,000 years, but they are shrinking rapidly because of …