In the next five years, the world has nearly a 1-in-4 chance of experiencing a year that’s hot enough to put the global temperature at 2.7 degrees (1.5 degrees Celsius) above preindustrial times, according to a new science update released Wednesday by the U.N., World Meteorological Organization and other global science groups.
That 1.5 degrees Celsius is the more stringent of two limits set in 2015 by world leaders in the Paris climate change agreement. A 2018 U.N. science report said a world hotter than that still survives, but chances of dangerous problems increase tremendously.
The report comes on the heels of a weekend of weather gone wild around the U.S.: Scorching heat, record California wildfires, and two more Atlantic storms that set records for the earliest 16th and 17th named storms.
Earlier this year, Death Valley hit 130 degrees (54.4 degrees Celsius) and Siberia hit 100 degrees (38 degrees Celsius).
The warming that has already occurred has “increased the odds of extreme events that are unprecedented in our historical experience,” Stanford University climate scientist Noah Diffenbaugh said.
For example, historical global warming has increased the odds of record-setting hot extremes at more than 80% of the globe, and has “doubled or even tripled the odds over the region of California and the western U.S. that has experienced record-setting heat in recent weeks,” Diffenbaugh added.
This story is from the Techlife News #463 edition of Techlife News.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the Techlife News #463 edition of Techlife News.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Warren Buffett Has Left the Table. Homeless Charity Asks Investors to Bid on Meal With Software CEO
The California homeless charity that received $53 million over the years from investors who wanted a private lunch with billionaire Warren Buffett has found a new business executive to auction off a meal with.
A Congressman Wanted to Understand AI. So He Went Back to a College Classroom to Learn
Don Beyer's car dealerships were among the first in the U.S. to set up a website. As a representative, the Virginia Democrat leads a bipartisan group focused on promoting fusion energy. He reads books about geometry for fun.
INTERNET PROVIDERS MUST NOW BE MORE TRANSPARENT ABOUT FEES PRICING, FCC SAYS
Much like nutritional labels on food products, “broadband labels” for internet packages will soon tell you just what is going into the pricing of your service, thanks to new rules adopted by the Federal Communications Commission this week.
CONTENT CREATION HOLDS APPEAL FOR LAID-OFF WORKERS SEEKING FLEXIBILITY
With a compact mirror in one hand and an eyelash curler in the other, Grace Xu told her roughly 300,000 TikTok followers she was likely about to be laid off.
IN ALEX GARLAND'S POTENT 'CIVIL WAR,' JOURNALISTS ARE AMERICA'S LAST HOPE
The United States is crumbling in Alex Garland’s sharp new film “ Civil War, “ a bellowing and haunting big screen experience.
MARGOT ROBBIE MAKING 'MONOPOLY' MOVIE AND BLUMHOUSE REVIVING 'BLAIR WITCH'
Margot Robbie has her sights on another toy. The “ Barbie “ producer and star is making a Monopoly movie, with Hasbro and Lionsgate behind it, the companies announced Wednesday at the CinemaCon conference in Las Vegas.
SOME STATES ARE SEEKING TO RESTRICT TIKTOK. THAT DOESN'T MEAN THEIR GOVERNORS AREN'T USING IT
POV: You’re on TikTok, and so is your governor — even as your Legislature considers banning the app from state-owned devices and networks.
HERE'S WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT UBER AND LYFT'S PLANNED EXIT FROM MINNEAPOLIS IN MAY
The future of Uber and Lyft in Minneapolis has garnered concern and debate in recent weeks after the City Council voted last month to require that ride-hailing companies pay drivers a higher rate while they are within city limits.
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION SETS FIRST-EVER LIMITS ON SO-CALLED 'FOREVER CHEMICALS' IN DRINKING WATER
The Biden administration finalized strict limits on certain so-called “forever chemicals” in drinking water that will require utilities to reduce them to the lowest level they can be reliably measured.
COURT UPHOLDS CALIFORNIA'S AUTHORITY TO SET NATION-LEADING VEHICLE EMISSION RULES
California can continue to set its own nationleading vehicle emissions standards, a federal court ruled this week — two years after the Biden administration restored the state’s authority to do so as part of its efforts to reverse Trump-era environmental rollbacks.