Climate Change Faster Than Expected
An increasingly large amount of scientific research, published since the IPCC 4th Assessment Report was released in 2007, shows that climate change is occurring right now, and that it is much faster than predicted only two years ago.
The evidence for this statement is from many areas. Some of the areas showing change are shown below.
-Many physical systems, in widespread sites, are already showing evidence of global warming. Examples include the timing of plant flowering, animal breeding, and lake thawing.
-Warmer ocean surface temperatures in Pacific & Atlantic hurricane-formation zones leading to stronger storms are significantly linked to human-induced warming.
-Ocean acidification is happening rapidly, as a result of CO2 in large amounts being dissolved in sea water. This will have massive changes on marine ecosystems and also food security for many nations.
-Calculated sea level rise this century will be greater than that calculated just 2 years earlier. It is expected to rise at least a meter, according to new scientific evidence.
-The accelerated melting of the ice sheet in Greenland that started in 2004 has been definitely linked to climate change.
-The West Antarctic Ice Shelf has undergone rapid melting over the last 10 years and has suffered 10 major ice shelf collapses over that time.
-Sea-ice in the Arctic is disappearing much quicker than previously estimated, and it is almost a given that this area will be ice-free in summer within a few decades.
-Permafrost in the Arctic Circle is thawing much quicker than recently thought, and is releasing larger amounts of greenhouse gases than predicted.
The climate change that we are now witnessing is expected to continue for millennia, even after all anthropogenic carbon dioxide production stops. This is because of the major lags present in the climate system, and the slow removal of CO2 from the atmosphere.
