Climate Change
![Climate change illustration](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/TY6SwtikwK9QzrrmuZcfoj-320-80.jpg)
It's real. It's happening. It's accelerating. And it's our fault. Human activity — particularly the production of greenhouse gasses from fossil fuel emissions — is reshaping our planet, effecting rapid environmental change at a rate never seen before. Global temperature averages are creeping upward, seas are warming, rising and becoming more acidic, and extreme weather events such as droughts, wildfires, floods and powerful storms are more commonplace. Here's where you'll find the latest on the effects of climate change, and the measures that scientists, world leaders and innovators are taking to reduce our harmful impact on the planet and mitigate the damage already done.
Latest about Climate Change
![A tree burns in a forest fire at nighttime.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/gPCgssEpePooVESRWCTzH4-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/gPCgssEpePooVESRWCTzH4-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/gPCgssEpePooVESRWCTzH4-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/gPCgssEpePooVESRWCTzH4-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/gPCgssEpePooVESRWCTzH4-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/gPCgssEpePooVESRWCTzH4-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/gPCgssEpePooVESRWCTzH4-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/gPCgssEpePooVESRWCTzH4-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
The 'safe' threshold for global warming will be passed in just 6 years, scientists say
By Sascha Pare published
New research suggests we have just six years left to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, and two decades to keep temperatures below the 2 C threshold in the Paris Agreement.
![World map of global temperatures in July, 2023.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/bjMLVwDvuZt9i5AUv8Ythc-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
This was the hottest summer ever recorded on Earth
By Aimee Gabay published
June through August 2023 were the hottest three months ever recorded, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
![Maxar overview satellite imagery shows the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GQbMHW3paBe7SE2a6s2YXV-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GQbMHW3paBe7SE2a6s2YXV-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GQbMHW3paBe7SE2a6s2YXV-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GQbMHW3paBe7SE2a6s2YXV-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GQbMHW3paBe7SE2a6s2YXV-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GQbMHW3paBe7SE2a6s2YXV-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GQbMHW3paBe7SE2a6s2YXV-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/GQbMHW3paBe7SE2a6s2YXV-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
Did the Tonga eruption cause this year's extreme heat?
By Patrick Pester published
The 2022 Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano eruption may have contributed to this year's heat, but it's not causing climate change.
![Layers of ice hanging off a glacier melt and drip water.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XwSVEp6bFRbcRuFyZRT3yj-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XwSVEp6bFRbcRuFyZRT3yj-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XwSVEp6bFRbcRuFyZRT3yj-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XwSVEp6bFRbcRuFyZRT3yj-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XwSVEp6bFRbcRuFyZRT3yj-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XwSVEp6bFRbcRuFyZRT3yj-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XwSVEp6bFRbcRuFyZRT3yj-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XwSVEp6bFRbcRuFyZRT3yj-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
We could be 16 years into a methane-fueled 'termination' event significant enough to end an ice age
By Sascha Pare published
Methane emissions from tropical wetlands have been soaring since 2006 and accelerating at the same breakneck speed as when Earth's climate has flipped from a glacial to an interglacial period.
![sunrise over sand dunes in the white desert in Egypt](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/yHZP4ETEXCWw7BFz25xfUV-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/yHZP4ETEXCWw7BFz25xfUV-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/yHZP4ETEXCWw7BFz25xfUV-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/yHZP4ETEXCWw7BFz25xfUV-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/yHZP4ETEXCWw7BFz25xfUV-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/yHZP4ETEXCWw7BFz25xfUV-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/yHZP4ETEXCWw7BFz25xfUV-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/yHZP4ETEXCWw7BFz25xfUV-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
'The stage was now set for the birth and growth of desert dunes': How the Sahara turned from a vast forest to the arid landscape we see today
By Martin Williams published
"A very remarkable series of events took place during the late Miocene between 5.96 and 5.33 million years ago."
![a goat standing on a mountain looking at the camera with blue sky in the background](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/3uVtDeapifSCRKATvSkjzW-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/3uVtDeapifSCRKATvSkjzW-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/3uVtDeapifSCRKATvSkjzW-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/3uVtDeapifSCRKATvSkjzW-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/3uVtDeapifSCRKATvSkjzW-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/3uVtDeapifSCRKATvSkjzW-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/3uVtDeapifSCRKATvSkjzW-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/3uVtDeapifSCRKATvSkjzW-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
15 unexpected effects of climate change
By Carissa Wong published
From shrinking goats to a dimmer Earth, here are some of the lesser-known impacts of rising global temperatures.
![Chimneys spew pollution into the atmosphere in a ruined landscape.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/o55PaD2wdkzPhMGtWSjHUK-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/o55PaD2wdkzPhMGtWSjHUK-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/o55PaD2wdkzPhMGtWSjHUK-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/o55PaD2wdkzPhMGtWSjHUK-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/o55PaD2wdkzPhMGtWSjHUK-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/o55PaD2wdkzPhMGtWSjHUK-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/o55PaD2wdkzPhMGtWSjHUK-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/o55PaD2wdkzPhMGtWSjHUK-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
19 'mass extinctions' had CO2 levels we're now veering toward, study warns
By Sascha Pare published
The research looked at peaks in biodiversity loss and their relationship with atmospheric CO2, finding 50 events over the last 534 million years that can be considered mass extinctions.
![aerial view of lake powell with low water level with desert surrounding and mountains behind](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/vSDuwRgRruEn4jEXQiFcw7-320-80.jpg 320w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/vSDuwRgRruEn4jEXQiFcw7-450-80.jpg 450w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/vSDuwRgRruEn4jEXQiFcw7-500-80.jpg 500w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/vSDuwRgRruEn4jEXQiFcw7-650-80.jpg 650w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/vSDuwRgRruEn4jEXQiFcw7-840-80.jpg 840w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/vSDuwRgRruEn4jEXQiFcw7-970-80.jpg 970w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/vSDuwRgRruEn4jEXQiFcw7-1024-80.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/vSDuwRgRruEn4jEXQiFcw7-1200-80.jpg 1200w)
Will the US run out of water?
By Aimee Gabay published
"The issue is not about running out of water, it's about having water in the right place," Lis Mullin Bernhardt, from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), told Live Science.
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