On Feb. 2, 2007, the United Nations scientific panel studying climate change declared that the evidence of a warming trend is "unequivocal," and that human activity has "very likely" been the driving force in that change over the last 50 years. The last report by the group, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, in 2001, had found that humanity had "likely" played a role.
The addition of that single word "very" did more than reflect mounting scientific evidence that the release of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases from smokestacks, tailpipes and burning forests has played a central role in raising the average surface temperature of the earth by more than 1 degree Fahrenheit since 1900. It also added new momentum to a debate that now seems centered less over whether humans are warming the planet, but instead over what to do about it. In recent months, business groups have banded together to make unprecedented calls for federal regulation of greenhouse gases. The subject had a red-carpet moment when former Vice President Al Gore's documentary, "An Inconvenient Truth," was awarded an Oscar; and the Supreme Court made its first global warming-related decision, ruling 5 to 4 that the Environmental Protection Agency had not justified its position that it was not authorized to regulate carbon dioxide.
The greenhouse effect has been part of the earth's workings since its earliest days. Gases like carbon dioxide and methane allow sunlight to reach the earth, but prevent some of the resulting heat from radiating back out into space. Without the greenhouse effect, the planet would never have warmed enough to allow life to form. But as ever larger amounts of carbon dioxide have been released along with the development of industrial economies, the atmosphere has grown warmer at an accelerating rate: Since 1970, temperatures have gone up at nearly three times the average for the 20th century.
The latest report from the climate panel predicted that the global climate is likely to rise between 3.5 and 8 degrees Fahrenheit if the carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere reaches twice the level of 1750. By 2100, sea levels are likely to rise between 7 to 23 inches, it said, and the changes now underway will continue for centuries to come.
A growing array of military leaders, Arctic experts and lawmakers say the United States is losing its ability to patrol and safeguard Arctic waters.
August 17, 2008WorldNewsA new report says the country is brimming with opportunities to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, while saving money at the same time.
November 30, 2007BusinessNewsIn its final and most powerful report, an international panel details mounting risks in specific and forceful language, scientists said.
November 17, 2007ScienceNews
It has been pointed out many times that we are engaged in a titanic global experiment. The further it proceeds, the clearer the picture should become.
February 6, 2007ScienceNewsThe report said warming and its harmful consequences could be substantially blunted by prompt action.
February 3, 2007ScienceNews
Scientists are unnerved by this summer’s massive polar ice melt, its implications and their ability to predict it.
Farm emissions are being discussed during international talks on a new treaty to combat global warming.
December 4, 2008Brazil pledged Monday that, to fight global warming, in the next decade it would halve the rate of destruction of its Amazon rain forest. Brazil said it would aim to reduce clearing of the rain forest to 2,260 square miles a year by 2018. Brazil, which had refused to adopt targets until wealthier countries offered more help, hopes the plan will help allay criticism that it has done too little to fight burning and clearing by loggers, farmers and ranchers. Rain forest destruction has made Brazil...
December 2, 2008
The rate at which icebergs break is primarily a function of the rate at which an ice shelf spreads, a new study suggests.
December 2, 2008
Scientists are tracking where greenhouse gases come from and where they go over time in order to learn how to budget emissions for the long term.
December 2, 2008If Barack Obama follows through on his commitments, this country will provide global leadership for addressing the dangers of climate change.
November 27, 2008
A poor global economy and plunging prices for coal and oil are upending plans to curb the use of fossil fuels.
November 25, 2008
Henry A. Waxman’s victory over John D. Dingell is expected to accelerate passage of energy, climate and health legislation backed by Barack Obama.
November 21, 2008The president-elect confirmed that he plans to stick to the aggressive targets he had set earlier for fighting climate change, saying, “delay is no longer an option.”
November 19, 2008The United Nations report was released two weeks before the world’s environmental ministers are to meet to discuss ways to curb greenhouse gases.
November 18, 2008The nation of 1,200 low islands in the Indian Ocean is planning to establish a fund so that it can buy a haven for its citizens should global warming raise sea levels at a dangerous pace.
November 11, 2008
Readers trusted Crichton to signal exaggerations. He may have fallen short at the end.
November 9, 2008Two novels set in a chilling future where civilization barely survives: “The Dead and the Gone” and “The Hunger Games.”
ABOUT: WE ARE ALL BORN FREE (BOOK)>; DEAD AND THE GONE, THE (BOOK); WE ARE ALL BORN FREE (BOOK); HUNGER GAMES, THE (BOOK)
November 9, 2008
Three fanciful picture books about bears, and one sad one about global warming: “A Visitor for Bear,” “Bear’s Picture,” “Wonder Bear,” and “Ice Bears.”
ABOUT: ICE BEARS (BOOK); BEAR'S PCITURE (BOOK); VISITOR FOR BEAR, A (BOOK); VISITOR FOR BEAR, A (BOOK)>; WONDER BEAR (BOOK)
November 9, 2008
The world’s top energy forecaster warned that the short supply of oil could lead to the return of triple-digit prices.
November 7, 2008A look at some of the crucial issues that will test the new administration, and how it might address them.
November 6, 2008SEARCH 2218 ARTICLES ABOUT GLOBAL WARMING:
Global warming has felt like breaking news a few times in recent years, but the first big pulse of coverage and public attention came in 1988.
This summer saw a record-breaking loss of Arctic sea ice.
How can we protect the planet for our children? Andrew C. Revkin looked at the latest research on global warming for AARP The Magazine.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released its latest report on Feb. 2, which provided a grim and powerful assessment of the future of the planet. The Times' Andrew C. Revkin answered readers' questions and responded to comments.
In a series of articles, a team of Times reporters described how the world is, and is not, moving toward a more secure, and less environmentally damaging, relationship with energy. Several of the writers responded to questions and comments
What should be done to address the world’s future energy needs? Andrew C. Revkin discusses the issues with readers.
Bill Clinton sits down with New York Times reporter Andrew C. Revkin after announcing his new plan to fight global climate change at the Large Cities Climate Summit in New York.
Malawi, India, the Netherlands and Australia will experience global warming in very different ways.
Science reporter Andy Revkin examines the long-term social consequences of rising temperatures and seas around the globe.
interactive: On Top of the WorldAndrew C. Revkin reports on his 2003 trip to the North Pole Environmental Observatory.
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