This is the 33rd issuance of the annual assessment now known as State of the Climate, published in the Bulletin since 1996. As a supplement to the Bulletin, its foremost function is to document the status and trajectory of many components of the climate system. However, as a series, the …
The Climate and Clean Air Coalition to Reduce Short-Lived Climate Pollutants (CCAC) has released a report, titled ‘Time to Act – To reduce short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs).' The report details the causes and sources of SLCPs, and outlines the potential benefits of control measures. According to the report, SLCPs are …
Just how much Arctic permafrost will thaw in the future and how fast heat-trapping carbon dioxide will be released from those warming soils is a topic of lively debate among climate scientists. To answer those questions, scientists need to understand the mechanisms that control the conversion of organic soil carbon …
Arctic bugs can survive in frozen ground as cold as -27°C, scientists have revealed. It is the first time higher-order invertebrates such as spiders, flies and beetles have been found coping in direct exposure to such cold temperatures. Previous lows were between just -5°C and a little below -10°C. The …
Sixteen-foot waves are buffeting an area of the Arctic Ocean that until recently was permanently covered in sea ice—another sign of a warming climate, scientists say. Because wave action breaks up sea ice, allowing more sunlight to warm the ocean, it can trigger a cycle that leads to even less …
The WWF contracted RPS Applied Science Associates to model 22 different oil spill scenarios and map the spread of the oil, potential impact on the water and shoreline, and interaction with sea ice, wildlife and the surrounding ecology. Types of oil spills analyzed included shipping spills, shallow-water blowouts and deep-water …
The Beaufort Sea is a unique ocean environment that covers approximately 476,000 km² (184,000 sq. mi), spanning the Canadian-U.S. border and stretching across the northern coasts of Alaska, Yukon and the western Northwest Territories. This remote sea has always been dominated by sea ice. However, as the Arctic warms due …
Melting Arctic ice is widening a path for ships to deliver European oil to Asia, stoking South Korea’s ambition to become a regional storage and trading hub. The country, whose proximity to China, Russia and Japan makes it an ideal conduit for oil arriving via the Arctic, plans to add …
The recent decade has seen an exceptional number of boreal summer weather extremes, some causing massive damage to society. There is a strong scientific debate about the underlying causes of these events. We show that high-amplitude quasi-stationary Rossby waves, associated with resonance circulation regimes, lead to persistent surface weather conditions …
2,500 nests in Alaska show that nesting is taking place up to seven days earlier, reports Climate News Network Arctic migrants are nesting up to seven days earlier as the world warms. The sandpiper makes a beeline for the Alaskan shores, to join the phalarope on the beach and the …
The 2014 Year Book shows how scientific endeavour and policy actions have led to innovative solutions and vital advancements. Yet these are frequently outpaced by overall economic growth. For example, as the fuel efficiency of cars has increased, the size of the vehicle fleet continues to grow. Similarly, as the …
This fifth edition of Global Strategic Trends (GST 5) aims to describe possible futures to provide a strategic context for policy- and decision-makers across Government. Thirteen broad thematic areas have been identified, with eight geographic regions and a section on space. Some trends (most notably those relating to economics, religion, …
Changes in climate variability are arguably more important for society and ecosystems than changes in mean climate, especially if they translate into altered extremes. There is a common perception and growing concern that human-induced climate change will lead to more volatile and extreme weather4. Certain types of extreme weather have …
Norway wants to let oil and gas companies drill in Arctic seas that were frozen as recently as the 1980s even though some climate experts say it is too early to trust global warming to keep the ice away. Russia is also showing new interest in the Arctic despite high …
Change in Southern Ocean winds helps explain why Antarctica is bucking the global warming trend Droughts across southern Australia are to continue increasing as the Roaring Forties get stronger and closer to Antarctica, a study has found. It also explains why Antarctica is bucking the global warming trend. Australian National …
Capital investment will never see a return if world's governments fulfil climate change pledge, says Carbon Tracker group Over $1tn is being gambled on high-cost oil projects that will never see a return if the world's governments fulfil their pledge to tackle climate change, according to a new report. The …
Washington: Researchers have found that the world is indeed getting warmer, but historical records show that it hasn't happened everywhere at the same rate. Zhaohua Wu, an assistant professor of meteorology at Florida State University, said global warming was not as understood as they thought. Wu led a team of …
In this follow-up to its landmark study, National Security and the Threat of Climate Change, CNA Corporation’s Military Advisory Board (MAB) re-examines the impact of climate change on U.S. national security in the context of a more informed, but more complex and integrated world. The MAB’s 2007 report described projected …
Government officials and top climate scientists will meet in Berlin from April 7-12 to review the 29-page draft that also estimates the needed shift to low-carbon energies would cost between two and six percent of world output by 2050. It says nations will have to impose drastic curbs on their …
The length of the melt season for Arctic sea ice is growing by several days each decade, and an earlier start to the melt season is allowing the Arctic Ocean to absorb enough additional solar radiation in some places to melt as much as four feet of the Arctic ice …
The world's first study of deep ocean trench has confirmed climate change — excessive warming of the ocean and melting of Arctic ice — has made marine life far sparser and less varied than expected in those depths. British and Kiwi scientists joined hands and dived into the previously unexplored …
