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This is a short article that explains that the climate is warming. It gives examples and has charts to show readers the overall global temperature the past few decades. I used this in my essay to provide evidence as to how much the temperature has changed since the 1900s.

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Yes. Earth's average surface air temperature has increased by about 1 °C (1.8 °F) since 1900, with over half of the increase occurring since the mid-1970s [Figure 1a]. A wide range of other observations (such as reduced Arctic sea ice extent and increased ocean heat content) and indications from the natural world (such as poleward shifts of temperature-sensitive species of fish, mammals, insects, etc.) together provide incontrovertible evidence of planetary-scale warming.

The clearest evidence for surface warming comes from widespread thermometer records that, in some places, extend back to the late 19th century. Today, temperatures are monitored at many thousands of locations, over both the land and ocean surface. Indirect estimates of temperature change from such sources as tree rings and ice cores help to place recent temperature changes in the context of the past. In terms of the average surface temperature of Earth, these indirect estimates show that 1989 to 2019 was very likely the warmest 30-year period in more than 800 years; the most recent decade, 2010-2019, is the warmest decade in the instrumental record so far (since 1850).

A wide range of other observations provides a more comprehensive picture of warming throughout the climate system. For example, the lower atmosphere and the upper layers of the ocean have also warmed, snow and ice cover are decreasing in the Northern Hemisphere, the Greenland ice sheet is shrinking, and sea level is rising [Figure 1b]. These measurements are made with a variety of land-, ocean-, and space-based monitoring systems, which gives added confidence in the reality of global-scale warming of Earth's climate.

Page last updated: March 2020
Find out about the Royal Society's latest work on energy, environment and climate

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1. Is the climate warming? | Royal Society

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Yes. Earth's average surface air temperature has increased by about 1 °C (1.8 °F) since 1900, with over half of the increase occurring since the mid-1970s [Figure 1a]. A wide range of other observations (such as reduced Arctic sea ice extent and increased ocean heat content) and indications from the natural world (such as poleward shifts of temperature-sensitive species of fish, mammals, insects, etc.)

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This article goes over the information of how exactly climate change works and what is causing it. I used this in my essay to provide a clear understanding of, as the title says, how climate change works.

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Climate science is based on years of monitoring and analysis. Flickr/glaciernps

Climate change is one of the greatest ecological, economic, and social challenges facing us today. The scientific evidence that human activities are contributing to climate change is compelling, and yet argument in Australia continues over whether we should act.

Understanding what science tells us about climate change and its effects is central to deciding how to deal with climate change.

Ross Garnaut's recent updates of his 2008 climate report have emphasised that the science is even clearer now than it was when he initially reported. Confusion over whether climate change exists comes from partisan argument in the media, not from the science itself.

Yes, we do need CO₂ - in moderation

We need greenhouse gases to survive. Those gases - including carbon dioxide (CO ₂), methane, and water vapour - retain heat and keep the planet warm enough to sustain life, much as a greenhouse does in cold climates. That's why why we call them greenhouse gases and refer to their role as the greenhouse effect.

The sun warms the Earth's surface and the Earth radiates energy back through the atmosphere into space. Greenhouse gases absorb some of the radiation released by the Earth's surface and then radiate heat in all directions, including back towards the ground - adding to the heat the ground receives from the Sun.

The surface of the planet would be more than 30 degrees cooler than it is now without this natural greenhouse effect and life as we know it would not be possible.

The Earth also stores these greenhouse gases, in various forms, in the oceans, in frozen tundra, in vegetation and soils, in limestone, and in hydrocarbons such as fossil fuels. The amount and form of the gases stored in different parts of the Earth generally tends to be, on average, in balance though exchanges between different stores occurs constantly. Persistent, even slight, changes in the environment, however, especially in temperature and moisture, can lead to changes in the amounts of these gases stored in different places, such as the ocean or atmosphere.

Higher temperatures can lead to more CO ₂ being emitted to the atmosphere, enhancing the greenhouse effect and making the earth warmer. This warming in turn leads to more CO ₂ being released, resulting in more warming, and so on.

Cooling reverses this feedback cycle. These processes can lead to natural long-term fluctuations in climate in ways that are still the subject of intense research.

The effect of many human activities is to actively take greenhouse gases from one store (such as fossil fuels and forests) and move them to others, especially the atmosphere and ocean. These human "interventions" are relatively new to the Earth and have become particularly influential over the last few hundred years. We are now a significant player in the "natural" balance among the various stores of greenhouse gases that affect Earth's climate.

Weather always changes, and so does climate

It is worth noting while thinking about climate that weather and climate refer to different things. Weather is the brief, rapidly changing condition of the atmosphere at a given place and time, mainly influenced by the movement of air masses. Climate, on the other hand, is average weather conditions over longer periods of years to decades.

Climate variability is the year-to-year variation in average conditions - for example, climate variability means this summer might be hotter than the last. Climate change refers to long-term trends in climate over many years or decades. A single warmer or cooler year is not enough evidence to conclude whether climate is changing, but systematic changes in average conditions over many years do provide evidence of climate change.

Earth's climate has always changed, alternating between long periods of warm (interglacial) and cool (glacial) conditions, cycling over tens to hundreds of thousands of years. These changes are driven by both external influences and dynamics internal to the Earth system.

Key external influences include fluctuations in the amount of energy emitted by the Sun and changes in the Earth's orbit and axial tilt that affect the intensity and distribution of the Sun's energy across the Earth.

Internal influences on climate include changes in the surface reflectivity due to the presence or absence of ice, changes in atmospheric composition of greenhouse gases, variations in ocean currents, drifting continents, and the cooling effect of volcanic dust folowing significant eruptions.

The Earth in the distant past has been both warmer and cooler than today. The Cretaceous Period (120 to 65 million years ago) was 5 to 7 degrees warmer than today and CO2 concentrations were much higher than those we know. The earth cooled substantially from the Tertiary Period to the Quaternary Period (2.5 million years ago). The past million years has generally seen a series of changes from major ice ages (glacial periods) to interglacial periods about every 100 000 years, and other variations with shorter periods.

Driven by humans, happening too fast

The current change in climate is different. Firstly, this climate change is happening much faster than in the last few million years. There is now strong evidence that recent rapid climate changes are driven largely by a range of human activities, particularly those that influence the usual exchanges of greenhouse gases among the various stores on Earth (atmosphere, ocean, limestone, etc). Most of these human contributions to climate change have occurred over the last 200-300 years, following the agricultural and industrial revolutions and rapid increases in global population.

Greenhouse gases are released into the atmosphere by "new" human activities such as burning fossil fuels, clearing forests, cement manufacture, and by many other industrial and agricultural activities. Our transfer of additional amounts of these gases to the atmosphere increases the amount of radiation trapped near the Earth's surface and drives accelerated warming. This forced transfer has no precedent in pre-human history and the associated atmospheric warming is called the enhanced greenhouse effect.

The increases in global temperatures are changing fundamental climate processes. Some of those changes may be beneficial, but most will cause more harm than good.

Climate change due to human activities is superimposed on natural climate variability. Sometimes it is masked by, and sometimes it exacerbates, these natural processes.

Historical records of temperature show that although temperatures vary naturally between ice ages and warm periods there is no record of temperatures within human history ever having increased as rapidly as they have over the past 100 years.

Many other aspects of the Earth's climate have also changed over the past century or more. Some regions have become wetter, while others have suffered increased periods of drought. Frosts have decreased and heatwaves have increased in many parts of the world. Mountain glaciers have shrunk and the sea level has risen.

Humans have responded and adapted to small variations in climate for thousands of years but now the changes are accelerating and humanity, more than ever before, is bound to lifestyles that are dependent on immensely complex infrastructure and agriculture for continued survival. Never before, for example, have there been around 150 million people living permanently within 1 m of existing sea level. Not everyone can easily relocate to avoid rising sea level and storm surges, as many cultures might have done in the past.

We can plan for future change

Careful measurements tell us how our climate has been changing over the last 100 years. We need a way to project what our future climate will be like in future, however, to work out what we should do now to accommodate those changes yet to come. The most powerful available mechanism to make those future projections is computer modelling of the Earth's climate system.

Years of scientific monitoring and analysis have shown the links between human activities and terrestrial, marine, and atmospheric climate processes. This analysis is central to crafting the computer models that can give us reasonable projections of future climate. These projections allow us to figure out many of the likely effects of climate change on the Earth's systems and humanity in general. This knowledge, though sometimes imprecise, allow us to plan how to adapt to what is now inevitable change and act to prevent even greater changes.

Humanity has learned to live with climate variability and we will keep doing so. Modern climate change, however, is a whole new challenge for this generation and for those to come. Our lives and the environment in which we live are affected in myriad ways by climate: changes in that climate are about to make all our lives very different.
This article is adapted from the introduction to CSIRO's publication, "Climate change: science and solutions for Australia", available here.

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Remind me again: how does climate change work?

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Climate change is one of the greatest ecological, economic, and social challenges facing us today. The scientific evidence that human activities are contributing to climate change is compelling, and yet argument in Australia continues over whether we should act. Understanding what science tells us about climate change and its effects is central to deciding how to deal with climate change.

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This article is a timeline of when greenhouse gases was first recorded, all the way to current times (2019). It explains all the major events that is related to climate change throughout the past 200 years. I used this in my paper to help explain the timeline and historical factors of climate change.

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Timeline (Milestones)

Here are gathered in chronological sequence the most important events in the history of climate change science. (For a narrative see the Introduction and Summary.) This list of milestones includes some of the major influences external to the science itself. Following it is alist of other external influences.

1800-1870
Level of carbon dioxide gas (CO2) in the atmosphere, as later measured in ancient ice, is about 290 ppm (parts per million).

Mean global temperature (1850-1890) is roughly 13.6°C.

First Industrial Revolution. Coal, railroads, and land clearing speed up greenhouse gas emission, while better agriculture and sanitation speed up population growth.

1859
Tyndall demonstrates that some gases block infrared radiation, and notes that changes in the concentration of the gases could bring climate change. => Other gases

International Meteorological Organization begins to compile and standardize global weather data, including temperature. => International

1896
Arrhenius publishes first calculation of global warming from human emissions of CO2. Simple models

1897
Chamberlin produces a model for global carbon exchange including feedbacks. => Simple models

1870-1910
Second Industrial Revolution. Fertilizers and other chemicals, electricity, and public health further accelerate growth.

1914-1918
World War I; governments learn to mobilize and control industrial societies.

1920-1925
Opening of Texas and Persian Gulf oil fields inaugurates era of cheap energy.

1938
Callendar argues that CO2 greenhouse global warming is underway, reviving interest in the question. => CO2 greenhouse

1939-1945
World War II. Military grand strategy is largely driven by a struggle to control oil fields.

1955
Phillips produces a convincing computer model of the global atmosphere. => Models (GCMs)

1956
Ewing and Donn offer a feedback model for abrupt climate change. => Simple models

Plass calculates that adding CO2 to the atmosphere will have a significant effect on the radiation balance. => Radiation math

1957
Launch of Soviet Sputnik satellite. Cold War concerns support 1957-58 International Geophysical Year, bringing new funding and coordination to climate studies. => International

Revelle finds that CO2 produced by humans will not be readily absorbed by the oceans. => CO2 greenhouse

1960
Mitchell reports downturn of global temperatures since the early 1940s.=> Modern temp's

Keeling accurately measures CO2 in the Earth's atmosphere and detects an annual rise.
=> CO2 greenhouse

The CO2 level is 315 ppm. Mean global temperature (five-year average) is 13.9°C.

1962
Cuban Missile Crisis, peak of the Cold War.

1963
Calculations suggest that feedback with water vapor could make the climate acutely sensitive to changes in CO2 level. => Radiation math

First meeting of experts concerned with global warming warns that a rise in sea level is likely, with "immense flooding" of shorelines. => Impacts

1965
Boulder, Colorado meeting on causes of climate change: Lorenz and others point out the chaotic nature of the climate system and the possibility of sudden shifts. => Chaos theory

1966
Emiliani's analysis of deep-sea cores and Broecker's analysis of ancient corals show that the timing of ice ages was set by small orbital shifts, suggesting that the climate system is sensitive to small perturbations. => Climate cycles

Manabe and Wetherald make a convincing calculation that doubling CO2 would raise world temperatures a couple of degrees. => Radiation math

1968
Studies suggest a possibility of collapse of Antarctic ice sheets, which would raise sea levels catastrophically. => Sea rise, ice, floods

Nimbus III satellite begins to provide comprehensive global atmospheric temperature measurements. => Government

1970
First Earth Day. Environmental movement attains strong influence, spreads concern about global degradation. => Public opinion

Aerosols from human activity are shown to be increasing swiftly. Bryson claims they counteract global warming and may bring serious cooling. => Aerosols

1971
SMIC conference of leading scientists reports a danger of rapid and serious global change caused by humans, calls for an organized research effort. => International

Mariner 9 spacecraft finds a great dust storm warming the atmosphere of Mars, plus indications of a radically different climate in the past.=> Venus & Mars

Droughts in Africa, Ukraine, India cause world food crisis, spreading fears about climate change. => Public opinion

1973
Oil embargo and price rise bring first "energy crisis". => Government

1974
Cooling from aerosols suspected to be as likely as warming; some journalists talk of a new ice age but scientists doubt all theories, call for more research. => Public opinion

1975
Warnings about environmental effects of airplanes lead to investigations of trace gases in the stratosphere and discovery of danger to ozone layer. => Other gases

Manabe and collaborators produce complex but plausible computer models which show a temperature rise of a few degrees for doubled CO2. => Models (GCMs)

1976
Studies show that CFCs (1975) and also methane and ozone (1976) can make a serious contribution to the greenhouse effect. => Other gases
Deep-sea cores show a dominating influence from 100,000-year Milankovitch orbital changes, emphasizing the role of feedbacks. => Climate cycles

Deforestation and other ecosystem changes are recognized as major factors in the future of the climate. => Biosphere
1979
Second oil "energy crisis." Strengthened environmental movement encourages renewable energy sources, inhibits nuclear energy growth. => Public opinion

US National Academy of Sciences report finds it highly credible that doubling CO2 will bring 1.5-4.5°C global warming. => Models (GCMs)

World Climate Research Programme launched to coordinate international research. => International

1981
Election of Reagan brings backlash against environmental movement to power. Political conservatism is linked to skepticism about global warming. => Government

IBM Personal Computer introduced. Advanced economies are increasingly delinked from energy production.

Some scientists predict greenhouse warming "signal" should become visible around the year 2000. => Modern temp's

Strong global warming since mid-1970s is reported, with 1981 the warmest year on record. => Modern temp's

Speculation over catastrophic climate change following a nuclear war, or a dinosaur-killing asteroid strike, promote realization of the atmosphere's fragility. => World winter

Antarctic ice cores show that CO2 and temperature went up and down together through past ice ages, pointing to powerful feedbacks. =>

Broecker speculates that a reorganization of North Atlantic Ocean circulation can bring swift and radical climate change. => The oceans

1986
Meltdown of reactor at Chernobyl (Soviet Union) cripples plans to replace fossil fuels with nuclear power.

1987
Montreal Protocol of the Vienna Convention imposes international restrictions on emission of ozone-destroying gases. => International

1988
News media coverage of global warming leaps upward following record heat and droughts plus statements by Hansen. => Public opinion

Ice-core and biology studies confirm living ecosystems give climate feedback by way of methane, which could accelerate global warming. => Other gases

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is established. => International

Fossil-fuel and other U.S. industries form Global Climate Coalition to persuade politicians and the public that climate science is too uncertain to justify action. => Public opinion

1990
First IPCC report says world has been warming and future warming seems likely. => International

Global warming skeptics claim that 20th-century temperature changes followed from solar influences. (The solar-climate correlation would fail in the following decade.) => Solar variation

Geologists discover massive extinction event 55 million years ago, associated with tremendous global heating caused by increase in greenhouse gases. => Rapid change

Study of ancient climates reveals climate sensitivity to CO2 in same range as predicted independently by computer models. => Models (GCMs)

Greenland ice cores suggest that great climate changes (at least on a regional scale) can occur in the space of a single decade. => Rapid change

Reports of the breaking up of Antarctic ice shelves and other signs of actual current warming in polar regions begin affecting public opinion. => Public opinion

1997
Toyota introduces Prius in Japan, first mass-market electric hybrid car; swift progress in large wind turbines, solar electricity, and other energy alternatives.

International conference produces Kyoto Protocol, setting targets for industrialized nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions if enough nations sign onto a treaty (rejected by U.S. Senate in advance). => International

1998
A "Super El Niño" makes this an exceptionally warm year, equaled in later years but not clearly exceeded until 2014. Borehole data confirm extraordinary warming trend. => Modern temp's

Qualms about arbitrariness in computer models diminish as teams model ice-age climate and dispense with special adjustments to reproduce current climate. => Models (GCMs)

Criticism that satellite measurements show no warming are dismissed by National Academy of Sciences panel. => Modern temp's

Mann's "hockey stick" data indicates current warming is historically unprecedented.
=> Modern temp's

Variety of studies emphasize variability and importance of biological feedbacks in carbon cycle, liable to accelerate warming. => Biosphere

2001
Warming observed in ocean basins; match with computer models gives a clear signature of greenhouse effect warming. => Models (GCMs)

Third IPCC report states baldly that global warming, unprecedented since the end of the last ice age, is "very likely," with highly damaging future impacts => Impacts and possible severe surprises. Effective end of debate among all but a few scientists. => International

Deadly summer heat wave in Europe accelerates divergence between European and US public opinion. => Public opinion

First major books, movie, and art work featuring global warming appear. => Public opinion

Kyoto treaty goes into effect, signed by major industrial nations except US. Work to retard emissions accelerates in Japan, Western Europe, US regional governments and corporations.
=> International

European Union initiates "cap and trade" market to reduce emissions.

Hurricane Katrina and other major tropical storms spur debate over impact of global warming on storm intensity. => Sea rise, ice, floods

In longstanding "hockey stick" controversy, scientists conclude that post-1980 global warming was unprecedented for centuries or more. => Modern temp's The rise could not be attributed to changes in solar energy. => Solar variation

"An Inconvenient Truth" documentary persuades many but sharpens political polarization.
=> Public opinion

China overtakes the United States as the world's biggest emitter of CO2.

Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets and Arctic Ocean sea-ice cover found to be shrinking faster than expected. => Sea rise, ice, floods

Climate scientists point out that even if all greenhouse gas emissions could be halted immediately, global temperature will remain elevated for millennia. =>

Many experts warn that damage from climate change is arriving at a faster pace than was anticipated just a few years earlier. => International

Excerpts from stolen e-mails of climate scientists fuel public skepticism. => Public opinion

Studies find total carbon emitted determines global temperature; the "budget" for avoiding dangerous heating is mostly used up.=> International

2011
Reaction to nuclear reactor disaster at Fukushima (Japan) ends hopes for a renaissance of nuclear power.

2013
An apparent pause or "hiatus" in global warming of the atmosphere since 1998, publicized by skeptics, is explained; the world is still warming (as following years would confirm). Modern temp's

2015
Researchers find collapse of West Antarctic ice sheet may be irreversible, bringing meters of sea-level rise over future centuries. => Sea rise, ice, floods

Rise of methane in atmosphere accelerates, threatening dangerous feedbacks. => Other gases

Paris Agreement: nearly all nations pledge to set their own targets for greenhouse gas cuts and to report their progress. => International

2016
Solar electricity and wind power become economically competitive with fossil fuels in some regions.

2018
IPCC report on 1.5°C warming says that to avoid dangerous climate change, the world's greenhouse gas emissions must be in sharp decline by 2030. => International.

2019
Increasing disasters (tropical cyclones, wildfires, etc.) join scientists' warnings to spur public demonstrations and civil disobedience.=> Impacts => Public opinion

Sixth IPCC report warns that catastrophic outcomes cannot be ruled out. => Impacts

Glasgow conference spurs pledges to restrict emissions - not enough to avoid dangerous climate change, but risk of catastrophic change is reduced. => International.

2022
Democrats in U.S. Congress pass legislation providing subsidies to reduce the nation's greenhouse gas emissions. => Government
Mean global temperature is 14.8°C, the warmest in tens of thousands of years. Level of CO2 in the atmosphere is 421 ppm, the highest in millions of years.

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A hypertext history of how scientists came to (partly) understand what people are doing to cause climate change. An abridged web version of Spencer R. Weart’s book presented by the American Institute of Physics.

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This article explains that 2019 was the 2nd hottest year and compares it to previous years. It also shows and explains "climate anomalies" that happened in 2019. I used this article in my essay to backup my claims with scientific evidence.

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The world's five warmest years have all occurred since 2015 with nine of the 10 warmest years occurring since 2005, according to scientists from NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI).

It was also the 43rd consecutive year with global land and ocean temperatures, at least nominally, above average.

The average temperature across the globe in 2019 was 1.71 degrees F (0.95 of a degree C) above the 20th-century average and just 0.07 of a degree F (0.04 of a degree C) cooler than the 2016 record.

Ocean heat content, which describes the amount of heat stored in the upper-levels of the ocean, was the highest ever recorded. High ocean-heat content can contribute to sea-level rise.

2019 as ranked by other scientific organizations

NASA scientists, who conducted a separate but similar analysis, concurred with NOAA's ranking. NASA also found that 2010-2019 was the hottest decade ever recorded.

Scientists from the United Kingdom Met Office determined that 2019 was one of the top-three hottest years on record, and the World Meteorological Organizationoffsite link also ranked 2019 second warmest for the globe.

More NOAA findings for 2019

The declining state of sea ice: Polar sea ice coverage continued its downward trend in 2019. Both the Arctic and Antarctic oceans recorded their second-smallest average annual sea-ice coverage during the 1979-2019 period of record.

December 2019 was near-record warm: The month was in fact Earth's second-hottest December on record, logging an average temperature 1.89 degrees F (1.05 degrees C) above the 20th-century average. Only December 2015 was warmer.

Continents baked: Parts of central Europe, Asia, Australia, southern Africa (including the island of Madagascar), New Zealand, Alaska, Mexico and eastern South America had record-high average land temperatures in 2019.

The annual globally averaged sea surface temperature was the second highest on record at 1.39 degrees F (0.77 of a degree C) above the 20th-century average and just behind 2016.

Northern Hemisphere snow cover was close to average in 2019, at 9.57 million square miles.

More > Access NOAA NCEI's 2019 climate report and images, as well as this data visualization from NOAA Climate.gov.

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2019 was 2nd hottest year on record for Earth say NOAA, NASA

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The world's five warmest years have all occurred since 2015 with nine of the 10 warmest years occurring since 2005, according to scientists from NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI). It was also the 43rd consecutive year with global land and ocean temperatures, at least nominally, above average.

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This article explains the timeline of when climate change first became a political topic, and how politician's views have changed over the years. I used this in my essay to explain the politics of climate change from a historical point of view.

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Climate Change Used to Be a Bipartisan Issue. Here's What Changed

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Climate change used to be a bipartisan issue. As 'An Inconvenient Sequel' arrives in theaters, here's a look at what changed.

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This article explains the many different factors that is caused by warmer temperatures in the ocean. I used this to provide examples of how warmer ocean temperatures are not good for the environment.

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The world's oceans are warming at a rapidly increasing pace, new research shows, and the heat is having devastating effects on marine life and intensifying extreme weather.

Last year, the oceans were warmer than any time since measurements began over 60 years ago, according to a study published Monday in the journal Advances in Atmospheric Sciences.

While global surface temperature measurements go back farther in time, the measurement of ocean heat content is considered one of the most effective ways to show how fast Earth is warming because more than 90 percent of the heat trapped by greenhouse gases goes into the oceans.

The new study, the first to analyze ocean temperatures for 2019, was based on two independent data sets and used a new way of filling data gaps to measure ocean temperatures going back to the 1950s.

When the scientists compared ocean temperature data from the last three decades (1987-2019) to the three decades before that (1955-1986), they found the rate of warming had increased 450 percent, "reflecting a major increase in the rate of global climate change."

Measured by a common energy unit used in physics, the oceans absorbed 228 sextillion joules of heat in the past 25 years. That's equivalent to adding the energy of 3.6 billion Hiroshima-size atom bomb explosions to the oceans, said the study's lead author, Lijing Cheng, with the International Center for Climate and Environmental Sciences at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics.

It's "irrefutable proof of global warming" that leaves no other explanation aside from the effects of human-caused heat-trapping greenhouse gas pollution, Cheng said.

The warming of the oceans has widespread effects. It causes marine heat waves that kill fish and coral reefs, fuels hurricanes and coastal downpours, spawns harmful toxin-producing algal blooms and also contributes to heat waves on land, said study co-author Kevin Trenberth, with the National Center for Atmospheric Research.

He linked the rising ocean heat content with ocean heat waves like the 2013 to 2015 "warm blob" in the Northeastern Pacific that resulted in a major loss of marine life, including a crash in cod populations.

"The ocean heat content changes are the primary memory of global warming," he said. "This manifestation of global warming has major consequences."

Warmer Oceans Fuel Hurricanes

Trenberth, with other scientists, has documented how rising ocean heat contributes to more intense tropical storms, including hurricanes that affect the United States.

"Hurricanes pump the ocean heat content into the atmosphere in the form of moisture. That results in extreme and record rainfall from storms like Harvey and Florence. It makes for stronger and longer-lasting storms," Trenberth said.

From 1960 to through 2019, the average temperature for the upper 2000 meters of the oceans increased by 0.12 degree Celsius, Cheng said. However, the ocean surface, where hurricanes draw their energy, and the air just above it have warmed almost 1 degree Celsius from the pre-industrial era.

The heat buildup will affect global transfer of heat via deep ocean currents.

It's nearly irreversible, at least on a human timescale, Trenberth said.

"Imagine mixing a pot of hot and cold water in the sink. It gets warm, and you can never get the hot or the cold back," he said.

The new study is based in part on data since 2005 from ARGO, a network of 3,000 free-floating sensors that record temperature and salinity in the upper 2,000 meters (6,561 feet) of the oceans.

Before 2005, scientists measured ocean temperatures with different devices, including expendable sinking thermometers dropped from research ships. Those reading weren't as widespread, so models were used to extrapolate temperatures over wider areas.

The new evaluation of ocean heat content reinforces other recent signs of global warming. This past decade was the warmest on record since measurements started, and 2019 ended up the second-warmest year on record, though it was the warmest in the oceans.

Ocean Warming Also Affects Land

In addition to increasing precipitation from tropical storms, rising ocean heat has consequences for sea level rise and for El Niño, Trenberth said.

"In the Pacific, a consequence is El Niños being bigger, and with stronger droughts and floods around the world," he said. "Even more modest things in the tropical Indian Ocean, called the Indian Ocean Dipole, can lead to patterns of weather that contribute to the heat waves and bushfires in Australia." In late in 2019, these anomalies changed radically and it became very warm around Indonesia, creating major flooding in Jakarta and continuing the dry spell over Australia, he said.

Recent scientific research also shows that the marine heat waves caused by rising ocean heat content can contribute to increasing outbreaks of toxin-producing algal blooms, in association with pollution. And rising ocean temperatures are likely contributing to the spread of seaweed in the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico, Trenberth said. The ocean warms from the top down, which increases stratification and reduces mixing and aeration, breeding conditions favorable for seaweed.

"It is critical to understand how fast things are changing," said John Abraham, a co-author of the study and a climate researcher at the University of St. Thomas School of Engineering in Minnesota.

"This problem is not going to go away, it is getting worse. We are already seeing the impacts of warming on society, from rising sea levels to hotter waters to more intense storms and to more wild weather.

"But this problem is solvable," he said. "The first thing we need to do is use energy more wisely. Let's not waste energy for no reason. Let's make our cars, homes and workplaces more efficient. In the end, we will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and save money."

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Ocean Warming Is Speeding Up, with Devastating Consequences, Study Shows

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The world's oceans are warming at a rapidly increasing pace, new research shows, and the heat is having devastating effects on marine life and intensifying extreme weather. Last year, the oceans were warmer than any time since measurements began over 60 years ago, according to a study published Monday in the journal Advances in Atmospheric Sciences .

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This is a short article to answer a question that many people ask. I included the answer to the question in my article to explain and lead up to my next thought.

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How can climate change affect natural disasters? | U.S. Geological Survey

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With increasing global surface temperatures the possibility of more droughts and increased intensity of storms will likely occur. As more water vapor is evaporated into the atmosphere it becomes fuel for more powerful storms to develop. More heat in the atmosphere and warmer ocean surface temperatur…

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This essay explains how and why natural disasters are increasing. The author also shows us statistics of the detrimental results of these dangerous storms. I added this to my paper to back up the idea that global warming is causing more natural disasters.

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Earth might seem like a more active and dangerous place than ever, given the constant media reports of multiple natural disasters recently. But a broader view reveals that it's not Mother Nature who's changed, but we humans.

Drawn by undeveloped land and fertile soil, people are flocking to disaster-prone regions.

This creates a situation in which ordinary events like earthquakes and hurricanes become increasingly elevated to the level of natural disasters that reap heavy losses in human life and property.

Meanwhile, in any given year, the death toll at the hands of Mother Nature varies greatly, as do the sorts of major deadly events.
How we die
Of the estimated 61,000 people who have died this year due to natural disasters, about 50,000 (according to today's estimate) were victims of the 7.6 earthquake that struck Pakistan Oct. 7. In 2004, by contrast, more than 60 percent of the total natural disaster deaths were caused by the tsunami in the Indian Ocean.

So far, the distribution of natural disasters for 2005 is similar to that of 2004, said Debarati Guha-Sapir, director of the Center for Research on Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) in Brussels, Belgium. However, Guha-Sapir cautioned that it is still premature to make direct comparisons between the two years, noting that the Dec. 6 tsunami that struck Indonesia and which killed 130,000 people.

Other natural disasters for 2005 that have resulted in a major loss of life include:

An 8.7 magnitude earthquake that struck Indonesia on March 28, killing more than 1,600 people.

Hurricane Katrina, which struck the Gulf Coast in late August, killing more than 1,200 people.

Hurricane Stan, which triggered mudslides in countries throughout South America that killed a reported 1,153 people when it made landfall Oct. 4.

Hurricane Katrina, which caused an estimated $200 billion dollars in damage, is the costliest natural disaster so far this year. It is also the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history.

All of these numbers pale greatly in comparison to deaths caused every year by war, famine and communicable diseases.
Disasters increasing
Along with the Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), CRED maintains an emergency disaster database called EM-DAT. An event is categorized as a natural disaster if it kills 10 or more people or leaves at least 100 people injured, homeless, displaced or evacuated. An event is also included in the database if a country declares it a natural disaster or if requires the country to make a call for international assistance.

According to the EM-DAT, the total natural disasters reported each year has been steadily increasing in recent decades, from 78 in 1970 to 348 in 2004.

Guha-Sapir said that a portion of that increase is artificial, due in part to better media reports and advances in communications. Another reason is that beginning in the 1980s, agencies like CRED and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) began actively looking for natural disasters.

"Like in medicine, if you go out into a village and look for cases you find much more than if you just sit back and let people come to you when they're sick," Guha-Sapir said.

However, about two-thirds of the increase is real and the result of rises in so-called hydro-meteorological disasters, Guha-Sapir said. These disasters include droughts, tsunamis, hurricanes, typhoons and floods and have been increasing over the past 25 years. In 1980, there were only about 100 such disasters reported per year but that number has risen to over 300 a year since 2000.

In contrast, natural geologic disasters, such as volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, landslides and avalanches have remained steady in recent decades.
What's going on?
Scientists believe the increase in hydro-meteorological disasters is due to a combination of natural and made-made factors. Global warming is increasing the temperatures of the Earth's oceans and atmosphere, leading to more intense storms of all types, including hurricanes.

Natural decadal variations in the frequency and intensity of hurricanes are also believed to be a contributing factor, as are large-scale temperature fluctuations in the tropical waters of the Eastern Pacific Ocean, known as El Niño and La Niña.

People are also tempting nature with rapid and unplanned urbanization in flood-prone regions, increasing the likelihood that their towns and villages will be affected by flash floods and coastal floods.

"Large land areas are [being] covered with cement so this means the flow of water becomes very strong," Guha-Sapir said. "The runoff from the water can't get absorbed by the soil anymore, so it keeps collecting and rushing down, getting heavier and faster, and then you have much bigger floods."

People aren't just putting themselves at risk for floods, but for natural disasters of all types, including earthquakes and storms like hurricanes and typhoons.
Making disasters
"As you put more and more people in harms way, you make a disaster out of something that before was just a natural event," said Klaus Jacob, a senior research scientists at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.

According to the World Bank's " Natural Disaster Hotspots: A Global Risk Analysis" report released in March, more than 160 countries have more than a quarter of their populations in areas of high mortality risks from one or more natural disasters. Taiwan was singled out as being the place on Earth most vulnerable to natural disasters, with 73 percent of it's land and population exposed to three or more threats.

The good news is that the number of deaths from natural disasters has decreased substantially in recent decades thanks to better disaster preparedness and prevention programs. But this statistic is tempered by the fact that more people are being injured, displaced or left homeless.

"If you don't die you need care," Guha-Sapir said. "To a certain extent we prevent people from dying but more and more people are affected."

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Scientists: Natural Disasters Becoming More Common

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Earth might seem like a more active and dangerous place than ever, given the constant media reports of multiple natural disasters recently. But a broader view reveals that it's not Mother Nature who's changed, but we humans. Drawn by undeveloped land and fertile soil, people are flocking to disaster-prone regions.

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This article explains just as the title states. It also mentions how it happens, and some statistics on wildfires in certain states and the U.S. I used this in my essay to show that an increase in fires is caused by climate change.

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The Connection Between Climate Change and Wildfires

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Wildfire activity in the US is changing dangerously, as conditions become hotter and drier due to climate change.

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This article talks about all the different effects that global warming has on our environment. And answers the question: yes, it really is that bad. I used this in my conclusion of my essay to wrap up the ideas I was presenting.

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Five and a half degrees Fahrenheit. It may not sound like much-perhaps the difference between wearing a sweater and not wearing one on an early-spring day. But for the world in which we live-which climate experts project will be at least 5.7 degrees Fahrenheit warmer by 2100, relative to pre-industrial levels (1850-1900), should global emissions continue on their current path-this small rise will have grave consequences. These impacts are already becoming apparent for every ecosystem and living thing, including us.

Human influences are the number one cause of global warming, especially the carbon pollution we cause by burning fossil fuels and the pollution capture we prevent by destroying forests. The carbon dioxide, methane, soot, and other pollutants we release into the atmosphere act like a blanket, trapping the sun's heat and causing the planet to warm. Evidence shows that the 2010s were hotter than any other decade on record-and every decade since the 1960s has averaged hotter than the previous one. This warming is altering the earth's climate system, including its land, atmosphere, oceans, and ice, in far-reaching ways.

More frequent and severe weather

Higher temperatures are worsening many types of disasters, including storms, heat waves, floods, and droughts. A warmer climate creates an atmosphere that can collect, retain, and unleash more water, changing weather patterns in such a way that wet areas become wetter and dry areas drier.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, in 2021, there were 20 weather and climate disaster events in the United States-including severe storms, floods, drought, and wildfires-that individually caused at least $1 billion in losses. "Disasters in 2021 had a staggering total price tag of $145 billion-and that's an underestimate because it excludes health damages," says Vijay Limaye, senior scientist at NRDC. "These climate and weather disasters endanger people across the country throughout the entire year. In fact, more than 4 in 10 Americans live in a county that was struck by climate-related disasters in 2021."

The increasing number of droughts, intense storms, and floods we're seeing as our warming atmosphere holds-and then dumps-more moisture poses risks to public health and safety too. Prolonged dry spells mean more than just scorched lawns. Drought conditions jeopardize access to clean drinking water, fuel out-of-control wildfires, and result in dust storms, extreme heat events, and flash flooding in the States. Elsewhere around the world, lack of water is a leading cause of death and serious disease and is contributing to crop failure. At the opposite end of the spectrum, heavier rains cause streams, rivers, and lakes to overflow, which damages life and property, contaminates drinking water, creates hazardous-material spills, and promotes mold infestation and unhealthy air. A warmer, wetter world is also a boon for foodborne and waterborne illnesses and disease-carrying insects, such as mosquitoes, fleas, and ticks.

Higher death rates

Today's scientists point to climate change as the biggest global health threat of the 21st century. It's a threat that impacts all of us-especially children, the elderly, low-income communities, and minorities-and in a variety of direct and indirect ways. As temperatures spike, so does the incidence of illness, emergency room visits, and death.

"There are more hot days in places where people aren't used to it," Limaye says. "They don't have air-conditioning or can't afford it. One or two days isn't a big deal. But four days straight where temperatures don't go down, even at night, leads to severe health consequences." In the United States, hundreds of heat-related deaths occur each year due to direct impacts and the indirect effects of heat-exacerbated, life-threatening illnesses, such as heat exhaustion, heatstroke, and cardiovascular and kidney diseases. Indeed, extreme heat kills more Americans each year, on average, than hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, and lightning combined.

Dirtier air

Rising temperatures also worsen air pollution by increasing ground-level ozone smog, which is created when pollution from cars, factories, and other sources react to sunlight and heat. Ground-level ozone is the main component of smog, and the hotter things get, the more of it we have. Dirtier air is linked to higher hospital admission rates and higher death rates for asthmatics. It worsens the health of people suffering from cardiac or pulmonary disease. And warmer temperatures also significantly increase airborne pollen, which is bad news for those who suffer from hay fever and other allergies.

Higher wildlife extinction rates

As humans, we face a host of challenges, but we're certainly not the only ones catching heat. As land and sea undergo rapid changes, the animals that inhabit them are doomed to disappear if they don't adapt quickly enough. Some will make it, and some won't. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's Sixth Assessment Report, the risk of species extinction increases steeply with rises in global temperature-with invertebrates (specifically pollinators) and flowering plants being some of the most vulnerable. Moreover, a 2015 study showed that vertebrate species (animals with backbones, like fish, birds, mammals, amphibians, and reptiles) are also disappearing more than 100 times faster than the natural rate of extinction, due to human-driven climate change, pollution, and deforestation.

More acidic oceans

The earth's marine ecosystems are under pressure as a result of climate change. Oceans are becoming more acidic, due in large part to their absorption of some of our excess emissions. As this acidification accelerates, it poses a serious threat to underwater life, particularly creatures with calcium carbonate shells or skeletons, including mollusks, crabs, and corals. This can have a huge impact on shellfisheries. In total, the U.S. shellfish industry could lose more than $400 million annually by 2100 due to impacts of ocean acidification.

Higher sea levels

The polar regions are particularly vulnerable to a warming atmosphere. Average temperatures in the Arctic are rising twice as fast as they are elsewhere on earth, and the world's ice sheets are melting fast. This not only has grave consequences for the region's people, wildlife, and plants; its most serious impact may be on rising sea levels. By 2100, it's estimated our oceans will be one to four feet higher, threatening coastal systems and low-lying areas, encompassing entire island nations and the world's largest cities, including Los Angeles, Miami, and New York City, as well as Mumbai, India; Rio de Janeiro; and Sydney, Australia.

But this isn't the end of the story

There's no question: Unchecked climate change promises a frightening future, and it's too late to fully turn back the clock. We've already taken care of that by pumping a century's worth of pollution into the atmosphere. "Even if we stopped all carbon dioxide emissions tomorrow, we'd still see some dangerous effects," Limaye says. That, of course, is the bad news.

But there's also good news. By aggressively reducing our global emissions now, "we can avoid a lot of the severe consequences that climate change would otherwise bring," says Limaye. While change must happen at the highest levels of government and business, your voice matters too: to your friends, to your families, and to your community leaders. Together, we can envision a safer, healthier, more equitable future-and build toward it. You can join with millions of people around the world fighting climate change and even work to reduce fossil fuels in your own life.
This story was originally published on March 15, 2016, and has been updated with new information and links.

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Are the Effects of Global Warming Really that Bad?

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Learn about global warming and the consequences to our environment from increased wildlife extinction rates to acidic oceans and polluted air.

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This article summarizes the general assembly high-level meeting that took place at some point last year to talk about climate change. I used this in my paper to conclude my essay, leading up to a call to action.

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This essay talks about how much the sea has risen since the 1800s, how it's effecting us, and why it's bad. I used this in my essay to show that the rising sea is not good and why.

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Sea level has risen 8-9 inches since 1880, and the rate is accelerating thanks to glacier and ice sheet melt.