What is climate change?
Are you sure there’s a link between temperature rise and CO2?
How are we causing climate change?
What will happen if we don’t reduce emissions?
Has global warming stopped?
How can I help?
Do climate scientists really agree about climate change?
No. The rise in global surface temperature has averaged more than 0.15 °C per decade since the mid-1970s. The 10 warmest years on record have occurred since 1997. Global warming does not mean that each year will necessarily be warmer than the last because of natural variability, but the long-term trend is for rising temperatures. The warmth of the last half century is unprecedented in, at least, the previous 1,300 years.
If emissions continue to grow at present rates, CO2concentration in the atmosphere is likely to reach twice pre-industrial levels by around 2050. Unless we limit emissions, global temperature could rise as much as 7 °C above pre-industrial temperature by the end of the century and push many of the world’s great ecosystems (such as coral reefs and rainforests) to irreversible decline. Even if global temperatures rise by only 2 °C, 20–30% of species could face extinction. We can expect to see serious effects on our environment, food and water supplies, and health.
Yes. The overwhelming majority of climate scientists agree on the fundamentals of climate change — that climate change is happening and has recently been caused by increased greenhouse gases from human activities. The core climate science from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was written by 152 scientists from more than 30 countries and reviewed by more than 600 experts. It concluded that most of the observed increase in global average temperatures since the mid-20th century is very likely due to the observed increase in man-made greenhouse gas concentrations.
Human activities, like travelling by car, eating hamburgers or heating water in the home have led to an increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, causing an enhanced greenhouse effect and extra warming. As a result, over the past century there has been an underlying increase in average temperatures which is continuing. Globally, the ten hottest years on record have all been since 1997.
Yes. Temperature and CO2 are linked. Studies of polar-ice layers show that in the past, rises in temperature have been followed by an increase in CO2. Now, it is a rise in CO2 that is causing the temperature to rise. Concentrations of CO2 have increased by more than 35% since industrialization began, and they are now at their highest for at least 800,000 years. When natural factors alone are considered, computer models do not reproduce the climate warming we have observed. Only when man-made greenhouse gases are included do they accurately recreate what has happened in the real world.
Over 40% of current CO2 emissions are caused by the choices we make as individuals. Simple actions can save money and energy; and there are many things you can do to reduce your CO2 emissions, from switching off electrical appliances when they are not being used to insulating your home properly and walking instead of driving one short trip a week, taking the train instead of flying or putting in energy-saving light bulbs in your home.
To understand climate change, it’s important to recognise the difference between weather and climate. Weather is the temperature, precipitation (rain, hail, sleet and snow) and wind, which change hour by hour and day by day. Climate is the average weather and the nature of its variations that we experience over time. The greenhouse effect is the natural process of the atmosphere letting in some of the energy we receive from the Sun (ultraviolet and visible light) and stopping it being transmitted back out into space (infrared radiation or heat). This makes the Earth warm enough for life. For several thousands of years the atmosphere has been delicately balanced, with levels of greenhouse gases relatively stable. Human influence has now upset that balance and, as a result, we are seeing climate change.
