Future Global Warming Will be Worse than First Thought
James Hansen, director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, has co-authored a paper saying that future global warming is likely to turn out worse than most people think. The most recent major report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in 2007 projects a temperature rise of three degrees Celsius, plus or minus 1.5 degrees—enough to trigger serious impacts on human life from rising sea level, widespread drought, changes in weather patterns, etc. But according to Hansen and his nine co-authors, the correct figure is closer to six degrees C. Although the full impact of this temperature increase will not be felt until the end of this century or even later, Hansen says, the point at which major climate disruption is inevitable is already upon us. To preserve humanity, CO2 levels will need to be reduced from its current 385 ppm to at most 350 ppm.
Tags: carbon dioxide, Global Warming, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, James Hansen, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies