Climate 101 is a Mashable series which answers provocative and important questions about the Earth's warming climate.A New Zealand newspaper published warnings that carbon emissions from fossil fuels would cause an increase in Earth's temperature 110 years ago. The paper stated that the effect could be substantial in just a few decades.It was a reasonable prediction. It turned out that a significant climate change has taken place faster than expected, in less than a century. Earth scientists now expect severe droughts and rapid-spreading wildfires to be exacerbated by the planet's warming.Monday's publication by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (or IPCC) provided the clearest picture yet on the state of the science on planetary heating. Nearly 4,000 pages of the report were authored by 234 scientists representing 66 countries (plus 500 additional scientists). It emphasizes that climate change has intensified and is increasing, but also shows that humanity can take action to prevent it from becoming more severe.Linda Mearns is a senior scientist at National Center for Atmospheric Research and was the lead author of the new publication. She has been working on IPCC reports for more than 25 years. She used to state that climate change was serious, certain, soon, and she had done the best science available.Mashable told Mearns that "that's not accurate" "It is very serious, it is very certain, and it is now.""It is very serious, it is very certain, it's now."Mearns stated that "Hopefully, this report will make an impact in terms of showing urgency."These are the main points of this climate report:Extreme weather events are becoming more extremeMashable: "Both frequency and intensity of many extremes in climate change increase with planet warming," Greg Flato (a senior researcher scientist for Canada) said to Mashable.As the climate warms, the atmosphere can hold more water. This causes heavy downpours. According to the report, the highest precipitation "has increased since the 1950s over most of the land area for observational data are sufficient." These areas include large parts of North America as well as Europe.But extremes don't always act alone.Mearns stated that "one of the most important messages from the report is the focus on extreme, and particularly compound extreme events." When more than one extreme occurs at once, it is called a compound extreme event.One example is the current fires in Western U.S. The West is experiencing unnatural fires due to a combination of high temperatures and poorly managed forests. Drought, made worse by heat waves and warmer temperatures, further parches land and evaporates water from vegetation and forests, making it more fuel-ready to burn. What does this mean? The result?Mearns stated, "Those are a lot heavy-duty extremes."The science has been right for decadesClimate scientists and Earth scientists have known for decades about the effects of humans on the planet's rapid warming. This has had many predictable consequences, including rising sea levels and more extreme heat.Flato stated that "this report really confirms information which was previously available," and he noted the addition of updated climate observations, analysis, and analyses in the new IPCC publication. Flato stated that "Human influences have caused the climate change", is the main conclusion of all research.There are no other factors, such as prodigiously erupting volcanic eruptions or increased activity from the sun, that could cause the climate to warm rapidly. In fact, the sun's output has decreased slightly over the past four decades, while Earth has warmed.The IPCC concluded that "it is unambiguous that human influence has warmed both the atmosphere and oceans,"The data on Earth's accelerated heating is overwhelming.The planet has warmed by 2 degrees Fahrenheit since the late 1800s. However, some areas have warmed more. NASA has over 26,000 weather stations, and thousands of ocean sensors that monitor the warming temperature. The IPCC stated that since 1990's first IPCC Report, large numbers have been added to the collection of data from the air, land and outer space.The oceans are changing rapidly and in a way that is both disturbing and alarmingIt is easy for land-dwelling people to forget that Earth is an ocean planet, dominated largely by marine critters. A chapter in the UN's latest report is dedicated to ocean changes. These changes are occurring at a faster pace than the natural, gradual climate changes that have occurred in the past. This has adversely affected civilization, especially along the coasts, and the marine life. Adaptation is not like flipping a switch.Rising sea levels are a clear and predictable consequence of a warming climate. Thick ice blocks, which have been frozen in Antarctica, Greenland and other mountains, are melting into oceans. Sea levels have already risen eight to nine inches globally since the late 1800s. These changes will continue for thousands of years.Flato stated, "It is one of the most important aspects of climate change that are effectively irreversible."Based on fossilized coastal creatures, the IPCC discovered that sea levels rose faster than ever in the 20th Century. The IPCC predicts that sea levels will continue rising in the coming century, assuming intermediate (not very high or low) carbon emissions scenarios.Other important changes are also expected in the oceans, but they will be less severe if carbon emissions are reduced this century.The future is ours.Earth's future will be determined largely by how much heat-trapping carbon humanity releases into the atmosphere in this century. The greater the carbon content, the more severe the impacts, especially on extreme weather conditions.Flato stated, "Every little warming we allow to occur increases these impactful extrem events,"We can limit global warming to much lower levels, but that is not the most important point.The IPCC stated that Earth, whose atmosphere contains the most heat-trapping carbon dioxide over 3 million years, will continue to warm through at least the middle of the century, even if society drastically reduces carbon emissions. According to the agency, Earth's temperature could rise by 2.7 F (1.5 C), which is 1.5 C higher than the 19th century level. This goal was set by the global nations in the historic Paris Agreement sometime in the 2030s.The IPCC stated that "global warming of 1.5C to 2C will be exceeded in the 21st Century unless there are deep cuts in CO2 emissions in the next decades."It is important to remember that warming can be controlled to far less extreme levels. For example, stabilizing global temperatures at 3.6 F (2 C) above the 19th century levels would be significantly less dangerous than attempting to reach 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit (3 C).To avoid the worst effects of climate change, systemic changes must be made in society. If people have the ability, they can make better decisions about climate and energy. For example, a national plan to greatly expand electric vehicle charging stations in order to encourage EV adoption.This is a difficult situation right now in a society dominated by fossil fuels. Mashable's Benjamin Franta, a J.D./Ph.D. student at Stanford Law School who studies law and history, said that even a homeless person lives in a society powered by fossil fuels. Food, transport, and everything else we rely on old, carbon-rich fuels.This is the clear picture.Richard Spinrad, administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, stated in a statement that "we have a very narrow window to avoid very expensive, deadly and irreversible future impacts on climate," "It is the consensus among the world's scientists that strong and sustained reductions in greenhouse gases are needed."
