Climate Change - a poll

[leicsmac]

Lots of rainfall and temperature records being set so far this year.

[leicsmac]

Further to the above...

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-68665166

 

Climate change could move "into uncharted territory" if temperatures don't fall by the end of the year, a leading scientist has told the BBC.

The warning came as data showed last month was the world's warmest March on record, extending the run of monthly temperature records to 10 in a row.

It's fuelled concerns among some that the world could be tipping into a new phase of even faster climate change.

A weather system called El Niño is behind some of the recent heat.

Temperatures should temporarily come down after El Niño peters out in coming months, but some scientists are worried they might not.

 

March 2024 was 1.68C warmer than "pre-industrial" times - before humans started burning large amounts of fossil fuels - according to the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service.

 

 

You can see the El Nino peaks, but the overall trend is always up, up, up.

[leicsmac]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4ndg7g75g8o

 

Lambing on one family's farm took a "horrific turn" this year because of a virus that killed nearly 40% of the offspring.

Experts say the impact of the Schmallenberg virus is likely to be at some of the highest levels we've seen nationally, but that cases are likely being under reported and the true situation may be much worse.

Another corollary of increased average global temperatures that isn't given the consideration it deserves. Warmer, damper weather = higher numbers of parasitic insects = higher amounts of disease caused by those insects.

[leicsmac]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-68835575

 

A deadly heatwave in West Africa and the Sahel was "impossible" without human-induced climate change, scientists say.

Temperatures soared above 48C in Mali last month with one hospital linking hundreds of deaths to the extreme heat.

Researchers say human activities like burning fossil fuels made temperatures up to 1.4C hotter than normal.

A separate study on drought in Southern Africa said El Niño was to blame, rather than climate change.

 

For me, El Nino certainly acts as a multiplier, but as the graph above categorically shows, it just sticks an extra peak in what is overwhelmingly an upward trend.

[leicsmac]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-68863796

 

Rishi Sunak has "set us back" on climate change and left the UK at risk of falling behind other countries, the head of a government watchdog has said.

Chris Stark, head of the Climate Change Committee (CCC), told the BBC the prime minister had "clearly not" prioritised the issue as much as his predecessors.

He accused Mr Sunak of sending the world a message that the UK is now "less ambitious" than it once was.

 

[...]Mr Stark said politicians in the UK across the spectrum have a "collective fear" of talking about climate change.

"You look out your window and you see we've had, you know, the wettest 18 months ever in this country, we've got the hottest year on record in the last 12 months.

"I think people around the world know climate change is happening, but there is definitely a fear of talking about it in British politics at the moment."

He cautioned against leaving a "vacuum" where climate change denial could creep in.

 

Short-term self interest trying to creep in and wreck the future, yet again.

[leicsmac]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-68897443

 

Deadly storms that left Dubai under water and killed more than 20 people in Oman were likely made worse by climate change, scientists say.

Heat pumped into the atmosphere by humans made the record rainfall 10-40% heavier, they say.

But the natural weather pattern El Niño also drove the intense storms.

Scientists warn the link to climate change is not fully certain because the rarity of rainfall in the region gives them little data to work with.

The study was carried out by scientists with the World Weather Attribution group. The experts also said the way that cities have been built made the impacts of the storm worse.

 

The tip of the (shrinking) iceberg when it comes to the consequences to come.

[Daggers]

[Innovindil]

On 20/04/2024 at 14:38, leicsmac said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-68863796

 

Rishi Sunak has "set us back" on climate change and left the UK at risk of falling behind other countries, the head of a government watchdog has said.

Chris Stark, head of the Climate Change Committee (CCC), told the BBC the prime minister had "clearly not" prioritised the issue as much as his predecessors.

He accused Mr Sunak of sending the world a message that the UK is now "less ambitious" than it once was.

 

[...]Mr Stark said politicians in the UK across the spectrum have a "collective fear" of talking about climate change.

"You look out your window and you see we've had, you know, the wettest 18 months ever in this country, we've got the hottest year on record in the last 12 months.

"I think people around the world know climate change is happening, but there is definitely a fear of talking about it in British politics at the moment."

He cautioned against leaving a "vacuum" where climate change denial could creep in.

 

Short-term self interest trying to creep in and wreck the future, yet again.

Doesn't look like Scotland is doing much better either. And that's with the greens holding more power than they ever have. Not good. 

[leicsmac]

5 minutes ago, Innovindil said:

Doesn't look like Scotland is doing much better either. And that's with the greens holding more power than they ever have. Not good. 

Given what's going on up there right now, I would certainly agree.

 

Not good at all. For one thing, the farming community are utterly up in arms about how it's affecting their yields this year (and it really is), but there doesn't seem to be anyone in high places either able or willing to take on applying solutions.

[leicsmac]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-68921215

 

Fuelled by climate change, the world's oceans have broken temperature records every single day over the past year, a BBC analysis finds.

Nearly 50 days have smashed existing highs for the time of year by the largest margin in the satellite era.

Planet-warming gases are mostly to blame, but the natural weather event El Niño has also helped warm the seas.

The super-heated oceans have hit marine life hard and driven a new wave of coral bleaching.

The analysis is based on data from the EU's Copernicus Climate Service.

 

And on today's edition of Record Breakers...

[Bellend Sebastian]

"We're on an express elevator to Hell, goin' DOWN!"

 

Ha ha, wheeeee etc

 

I do wonder what would happen if the sort of coverage above and the stuff in The Guardian today was published prominently everywhere, would more people start to crap themselves?

[leicsmac]

6 minutes ago, Bellend Sebastian said:

"We're on an express elevator to Hell, goin' DOWN!"

 

Ha ha, wheeeee etc

 

I do wonder what would happen if the sort of coverage above and the stuff in The Guardian today was published prominently everywhere, would more people start to crap themselves?

I think that the coverage is widespread enough that everyone with an Internet connection and not blinded by denial or short-term self-interest (or both) knows what the score is, tbh.

[Bellend Sebastian]

42 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

I think that the coverage is widespread enough that everyone with an Internet connection and not blinded by denial or short-term self-interest (or both) knows what the score is, tbh.

I dunno, I think it's still too easily avoided. If you don't like facing up to the reality of things, there are places you can go media wise that provide a pretty good safe haven from it. 

 

My worry is how big the population you've referred to is

[leicsmac]

4 minutes ago, Bellend Sebastian said:

I dunno, I think it's still too easily avoided. If you don't like facing up to the reality of things, there are places you can go media wise that provide a pretty good safe haven from it. 

 

My worry is how big the population you've referred to is

IMO the real issue is (as you infer here) not ignorance as such, but more denial and apathy. It is so much easier to close your ears and go to those safe havens you mention than actually face down the biggest problem the biosphere has faced in the last 70 millenia.

 

I do think that population is very big, yeah, and in democratic systems, that represents a real problem.

[WigstonWanderer]

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/may/08/world-scientists-climate-failure-survey-global-temperature
 

I’m sure it’ll all work out okay 

[leicsmac]

10 hours ago, WigstonWanderer said:

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/may/08/world-scientists-climate-failure-survey-global-temperature
 

I’m sure it’ll all work out okay 

Oh, no doubt. Life has recovered from mass extinction events before, of course.

 

Just a shame about everything that will be lost, really. Including our civilisation and the idea that we can be somehow different from the animals we should be stewards of.

[leicsmac]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c72pp3yqzjyo

 

Clues hidden deep in the trunks of ancient trees have revealed that last summer was the northern hemisphere's hottest in 2,000 years.  Last year had already been confirmed as the world's warmest on record by a large margin, at least since 1850, due to climate change. 

 

But tree rings, which record temperature information far further back than even Victorian scientific records, now show just how unprecedented last year's scorching temperatures were. 

 

Researchers say that temperatures last June, July and August were nearly 4C warmer than the coldest summer two millennia ago.

 

 

Well, apparently the "medieval warm period"... wasn't all that warm, for purposes of comparison. How about that.

[leicsmac]

@Unabomber @st albans fox @Heathrow fox

 

Gotta respond here on the matter.

 

Yeah, rather than many peaks of really high temperatures it's part of a consistent increase where lowest temps increase as much as higher ones and push up the overall average.

 

All part of an overall upward trend, too.

[st albans fox]

27 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

@Unabomber @st albans fox @Heathrow fox

 

Gotta respond here on the matter.

 

Yeah, rather than many peaks of really high temperatures it's part of a consistent increase where lowest temps increase as much as higher ones and push up the overall average.

 

All part of an overall upward trend, too.

Yes 

whilst many think the consequences of CC will be a hot arid arid climate, there will be parts of the world where it is just damper and milder which could lead to unknown effects re agriculture  (effects on insects being an obvious one) 

[leicsmac]

1 hour ago, st albans fox said:

Yes 

whilst many think the consequences of CC will be a hot arid arid climate, there will be parts of the world where it is just damper and milder which could lead to unknown effects re agriculture  (effects on insects being an obvious one) 

Right. We're already seeing negative effects of insect-borne diseases on livestock in the UK due to better conditions for the insects that breed diseases for one consequence, and that's not going to get any better.

Edited 3 June 2024 by leicsmac

[leicsmac]

https://m-en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20240619003252315

 

Record temperatures in Asia...

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cv224v27n13o

 

... and across North America.

[st albans fox]

1 hour ago, leicsmac said:

https://m-en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20240619003252315

 

Record temperatures in Asia...

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cv224v27n13o

 

... and across North America.

So far this late spring and  summer we’ve seen eastern USA and nw Europe on the cooler side of the blocks. So the heat has often been areas that are used to it. Now we’re seeing the heat domes re positioning and the next couple weeks will likely dictate if these remain for July.

 

of course this isn’t climate - it’s weather but the public aren’t generally able to differentiate. 

[leicsmac]

3 minutes ago, st albans fox said:

So far this late spring and  summer we’ve seen eastern USA and nw Europe on the cooler side of the blocks. So the heat has often been areas that are used to it. Now we’re seeing the heat domes re positioning and the next couple weeks will likely dictate if these remain for July.

 

of course this isn’t climate - it’s weather but the public aren’t generally able to differentiate. 

Perhaps a little more differentiation is called for then - this is weather being driven by climate, because those heat domes, wherever they are turning up, are more extreme in terms of effect than they have ever been, and that is irrefutably down to increased global average temperatures.

[st albans fox]

12 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

Perhaps a little more differentiation is called for then - this is weather being driven by climate, because those heat domes, wherever they are turning up, are more extreme in terms of effect than they have ever been, and that is irrefutably down to increased global average temperatures.

Indeed - my point being that thus far this summer, many of the population centres of the west have seen cool conditions and hence the response to these temp records is to laugh at them cos it’s not hot in London or NYC 

[leicsmac]

19 minutes ago, st albans fox said:

Indeed - my point being that thus far this summer, many of the population centres of the west have seen cool conditions and hence the response to these temp records is to laugh at them cos it’s not hot in London or NYC 

Thank you for the clarification, certainly agree there.

 

It's very unfortunate.