We are
experiencing unprecedented heat waves throughout most of the northern
hemisphere. The ten hottest years ever
recorded in Maine have occurred over the past twelve years. Heat waves in Europe have caused massive
deaths and infrastructure failures.
Since the
beginning of the industrial revolution, the world climate temperature has
increased by two degrees.
It is hard
to understand how a two-degree increase in temperature can cause such climate
extremes. Even knowing that that two-degree
increase is an average of temperatures across the globe, it is not until we
realize that during the Ice Age when most of the northern hemisphere was covered
by glaciers, the global temperature average was just eight degrees cooler than
at the advent of the industrial revolution.
Small
changes in global average temperature can cause massive changes in the
climate.
Adding to
the problem, arctic ice is melting at an unprecedented rate, uncovering tundra
that has been buried for thousands of years.
This tundra is releasing carbon dioxide which further adds to global warming.
Even decreasing
carbon emissions now can only slow down the slide into a future climate that is
unknowable in its relation to human habitability.
I often defer to Neil de Grasse Tyson when trying to understand difficult science concepts.
Stay cool
the Ol'Buzzard
Will people wake up and take action in time? Not when they're being lied to by big corporations and the right wing, that's for sure.
ReplyDeleteWell, at least in the Desert we're used to extreme Heat and have Air Conditioning... but some places are so ill prepared for the extremes in temperatures rising. Unfortunately, too many won't Believe that Global Warming will be a Thing in their Lifetime and live on the Planet Denial.
ReplyDelete