Climate change is the term used to characterize the impacts of global warming, or the continuous rise in the average global temperature, on the Earth’s climate system. Broadly speaking, long-term changes in Earth’s climate in the past are also considered to be part of climate change. The combustion of fossil fuels by humans is the main cause of the present, faster-than-historic rise in the average world temperature. The use of fossil fuels, deforestation, and some industrial and agricultural processes increase the amount of greenhouse gases, mostly methane and carbon dioxide. After the Earth heats from sunlight, part of the heat it emits is absorbed by greenhouse gases. Global warming is the result of more of these gases trapping heat in the lower atmosphere of the Earth.
The environment is being impacted by climate change more and more. Heat waves and wildfires are getting more frequent, and deserts are growing larger. Sea ice decrease, glacier retreat, and permafrost thawing have all been attributed to increased warming in the Arctic. Storms, droughts, and other weather extremes are becoming more severe as a result of rising temperature. Several species are being forced to migrate or go extinct due to the rapid environmental change occurring in the Arctic, mountains, and coral reefs. Certain impacts will last for millennia, even in the event that attempts to reduce future warming are successful. These consist of sea level rise, ocean acidification, and ocean heating.
People are at risk from climate change due to greater flooding, intense heat waves, shortages of food and water, increased illness, and financial losses. Conflict and human migration may also follow. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), climate change poses the biggest risk to world health in the twenty-first century. Inaction to slow global warming will expose societies and ecosystems to increasingly serious hazards. Although there are already certain limits to adaptation, climate change hazards can be somewhat mitigated by actions like flood control measures or drought-resistant crops. Although they contribute very little to global emissions, poorer populations are most vulnerable to climate change and have the least capacity for adaptation.
Techniques for phasing out fossil fuels include energy conservation, sustainable energy generation, and the use of electricity for industrial operations, transportation, and building heating. Significantly expanding the use of nuclear, renewable energy sources, solar, wind, and other energies can make the electrical supply cleaner and more abundant. Moreover, carbon may be extracted from the atmosphere by agricultural practices that collect carbon in the soil and expanding the amount of forest cover.
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Recent years have seen a great deal of the effects of climate change, with 2023 being the warmest on record at +1.48 °C (2.66 °F). These effects will worsen with more warming, which may also lead to tipping points like the complete melting of the Greenland ice sheet. As per the 2015 Paris Agreement, all countries committed to limiting global warming to “well under 2 °C”. Even with the Agreement’s commitments, global warming would still occur by the end of the century and be around 2.7 °C (4.9 °F).Reducing emissions by half by 2030 and reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 are necessary to keep global warming to 1.5 °C.