What is climate change?
Climate is an area's long-term average of weather. A change in those typical conditions is called climate change. Humans' use of oil, gas, and coal for their buildings, industry, and transportation is to blame for the rapid climate change we are currently witnessing.
These fossil fuels release greenhouse gasses upon combustion, primarily carbon dioxide (CO2). The planet's temperature increases as a result of these gasses trapping solar heat. The amount of CO2 in the atmosphere has increased by 50%, and the world is currently 1.1C warmer than it was in the 19th century.
The Earth is Warming-Up
According to climate scientists, temperature increases must slow down if we want to prevent the worst effects of climate change. By 2100, it is reportedly necessary to limit global warming to 1.5C. The globe might still warm by more than 2C by then, though, if no additional action is taken.
By the end of the century, the independent Climate Action Tracker group predicted that the planet would have warmed by 2.4C. If nothing is done, scientists believe that global warming could surpass 4C in the future, resulting in severe heat waves, the loss of millions of houses to rising sea levels, and the irrevocable extinction of plant and animal species.
What effects does climate change have?
Globally, extreme weather events are already getting more and more dangerous, endangering lives and livelihoods. As cropland transforms into desert, some areas may become uninhabitable as global temperatures rise.
Currently experiencing its fifth season of poor rainfall, East Africa is putting up to 22 million people at risk of being hungry, according to the UN's World Food Programme. As was the case last summer in Europe, extreme temperatures can significantly raise the risk of wildfires. In comparison to the average, France and Germany burned nearly seven times more land between January and the middle of July 2022.
In addition, as it becomes warmer, formerly frozen earth will melt in regions like Siberia, releasing greenhouse gasses that have been stored for ages and accelerating climate change.
Extreme rainfall in other areas is producing record flooding, as recently observed in China, Pakistan, and Nigeria. Because they have fewer resources to adapt to climate change, people who live in developing nations are predicted to suffer the most. However, these countries are frustrated since they have the lowest greenhouse gas emissions.