This NASA visualization shows a rapid decline in Arctic Sea ice over the last 35 years, based on satellite observations. The situation is really bad: in the 1st week of January 1988, over 1.2 million sq. miles (3.1 million km2) were covered by sea ice 4 years of age or older, compared with just over […]
Category Archives: Climate
Carbon, Climate Change, and Public Health
The era of climate change is upon us, and if we stand idle, its far-reaching negative impact will only increase. Increased emissions of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide play a significant role in the onset of climate change. Gases like these trap heat in the atmosphere, not allowing temperatures to fall. […]
Climate explained: why Mars is cold despite an atmosphere of mostly carbon dioxide
Paulo de Souza, Griffith University Climate Explained is a collaboration between The Conversation, Stuff and the New Zealand Science Media Centre to answer your questions about climate change.
Forget the Anthropocene: we’ve entered the synthetic age
One fact about our time is becoming increasingly well-known. No matter how far you travel, no matter in which direction you point, there is nowhere on Earth that remains free from the traces of human activity. The chemical and biological signatures of our species are everywhere. Transported around the globe by fierce atmospheric winds, relentless […]
How developing countries struggling with air pollution can reduce emissions
Whilst air pollution is a problem all around the world, it can be particularly troublesome in developing countries. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 98% of inhabitants of big cities in low-income countries live in a high level of air pollution, leaving them with a number of health problems due to the poor quality […]
Benefits of Renewable Energy Sources: Is Renewable Energy the Key to Fighting Climate Change?
There is no way of protecting the climate without drastically mitigating fossil fuel combustion. Nearly half of CO2 pollution comes from power plants burning fossil fuels. But there’s a way to turn things around. Renewable energy cuts down carbon pollution and has a much lower impact on the environment.
What Earth’s changing climate can teach us about altering the surface of Mars
Gareth Dorrian, University of Birmingham and Ian Whittaker, Nottingham Trent University In a rare instance of environmental success, the United Nations has just announced it believes the damage to the Earth’s protective ozone layer will be fully restored by the year 2050. This stands in stark contrast to the increasing alarm over the climate emergency, […]
Climate change created today’s large crocodiles
Pedro L. Godoy, Stony Brook University (The State University of New York) What does the term crocodylian bring to mind? A big reptile with a chomping jaw?
Five climate change science misconceptions – debunked
Mark Maslin, UCL The science of climate change is more than 150 years old and it is probably the most tested area of modern science. However, the energy industry, political lobbyists and others have spent the last 30 years sowing doubt about the science where none really exists. The latest estimate is that the world’s […]
How Individual Environmental Action Can Impact Systemic Change
Today, climate change is a very real and looming threat. However, when the subject of climate change and possible solutions is discussed, the phrase “we need bigger changes” is often bandied about. Individuals tend to shift the responsibility of fixing human-caused damage to the environment to larger systems – but with little concrete action being […]
