Climate Change and Global Warming is Now a Reality

Global warming is certainly inducing sudden changes in weather patterns like the global winds circulations which is resulting in a Climate Change which has severe consequences for water availability, flooding, drought, landslides, food and energy. This Climate Change is threatening the livelihoods of man as he competes for natural resources. The result is endless conflicts over resources which have huge loss of lives.

It is not difficult to understand that:

1. Carbon dioxide, along with other gasses, traps heat in the Earth's atmosphere.
2. We Humans are pumping unprecedented amounts of these carbon gasses into the Earth's atmosphere
3. Research available now is showing us that the earth is getting hotter and ice fields are disappearing, all increasingly in line with the amount of carbon in the atmosphere

What Are You Doing About It?

No one is disputing the aforementioned. But you, what are you doing about? It's natural for us Human to assume that if it does not affect you at the moment, it doesn't matter. The harmony with Mother Nature is now out of balance and that is the reason why you and I have to take action today on this Climate Change and Global Warming.

But really what is Climate Change? It's a permanent shift in the traditional space-time patterns of climate - a change from one climate mode to another climate mode, which is outside the normal range of natural climate variability regardless of the causes.

There are two types of driving forces to change climate:

1. Natural Driving Forces
2. Man Made Driving Forces

Natural Drivers are due to the variation of the orbital distance of the Earth from the Sun which leads to the cold glacial and warm inter-glacial periods. Each period lasts about 100,000 years which is a slow change and we humans do not easily notice it. Natural Driving Forces also include sun's activity which is a solar cycle of 22 years. There is not much we can do about these Natural Driving Forces.

Man Made Driving Forces include Greenhouse gases released to atmosphere by man which impose positive radiation forces which lead to global warming. Greenhouse gases are gases such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and halons which are used in refrigeration, fire control and in industrial solvents. Land uses such as clearing of forests will impose negative radiation forces leading to cooling through increase in reflectivity. Urbanization imposes a positive but localized forcing through the heat island effect whilst aerosols impose negative or positive forcing depending on the height and effects on clouds.

The near-surface temperature of the earth has increased by 0.74 degree Celsius over the last century. The largest environmental changes have taken place at high latitudes and or Polar Regions. One of the most pronounced warm periods had its peak around 1940 in Iceland. Over the next century, near surface air temperature will rise more in the polar regions than in any other parts of the Earth as a result of the increasing levels of greenhouse gases.

The Global impacts of this is a rise in sea-level due to loss of ice from the Greenland ice sheet and disintegration of a number of floating ice shelves around the Antarctic Peninsula. This will increase the risk of flooding and low-lying areas and islands will be wiped out. Global impacts will include a threat to biodiversity which is the survival of plant and animal species. The traditional way of life of indigenous people of Arctic, who depend on those animals and plants for their food, settlements, clothing, fishing and hunting, will be affected.

Global warming is an urgent, but solvable problem. That's why I've joined the We Campaign, a powerful nonpartisan movement of concerned citizens that was founded by Nobel Prize Laureate and former Vice President Al Gore. We're already a million strong -- and growing each day.

Will you join, too? Visit this site to learn more and add your voice: http://www.wecansolveit.org.

The We Campaign is working to ensure that elected leaders make the climate crisis a priority. Here, you can learn about solutions to global warming, take action steps and even find events happening in your community. Although it's not too late, global warming is very serious and there is no time to lose. So please don't wait any longer to get involved - sign up today:

Together, we can solve the climate crisis.

Sufficient Scientific Evidence is showing that:

1. The Earth's climate is rapidly changing, mainly due to increases in greenhouse gases caused by human activities.
2. Human activities have led to changes in the composition and properties of the atmosphere.
3. Since pre-industrial times (around 1750), carbon dioxide concentrations have increased by more than one third from 280 parts per million to 380 parts per million.
4. The increase in the CO2 is predominantly because of burning fossil fuels, deforestation, and other changes in land-use.
5. The increase in the concentration of CO2 has been accompanied by rising concentrations of other greenhouse gases, particularly methane and nitrous oxide.
6. The combined effect is Global Warning through the Green House Effect

Extreme Events

There are significant changes in the frequency and intensity of extreme events with only small changes in climate - Relatively higher frequencies and more intense extreme climate events. Such extreme events include floods, drought, heat waves, cold spells, strong winds, hurricanes, storms and so on and so forth.

Current Scientific Observations

It is now discernible from climate observations that:

1. Global average air and ocean temperatures have increased

2. There is widespread melting of snow and ice;

3. There is decline in Mountain Glaciers

4. There are rising global mean sea levels.

The Linear Global average air temperature change for the 100-years period from 1906 to 2005 is +0.74 degree Celsius compared to the corresponding Global average air temperature change of 0.6 degree Celsius from 1901 to 2000. Average ocean temperature increased within the depths of more than 3000 m deep - the oceans has absorbed 80 percent of heat added leading to seawater expansion and a rise of sea levels.

On other scales, numerous long-term changes in climate have been observed such as:

1. Widespread changes in precipitation amounts, ocean salinity and wind patterns

2. More frequent and intense severe weather and extreme climate events such as droughts, heavy precipitation, heat waves and more violent tropical cyclones or hurricanes.

The increased precipitation in the continents of America, Europe and Asia is indeed very significant. The frequency and increased amounts of precipitation events over most land areas is consistent with warming and increases of atmospheric water vapor. Since 1970s, there has been prolonged drying in Sahel, Mediterranean, southern Africa and parts of southern Asia.

Severe droughts that lasted for longer periods have also been observed in the tropics and subtropics.

Every now and then we are experiencing widespread changes in extreme temperatures resulting in less frequent cold days, cold nights, frost and more frequent hot days, hot nights, heat waves.

Predictions for the Future

With the current rate of industrialization and sustained Green House Gasses emissions at or above current rates would cause further warming and induce many changes in the global climate system during the 21st century that would be larger than those observed during the 20th century. For the next two decades a warming of about 0.2 degree Celsius per decade is to happen. Even if the concentrations of all Green House Gasses and aerosols is kept constant at year 2000 levels, a further warming of about 0.1 degree Celsius per decade will happen.

Snow cover is projected to contract and sea ice will shrink in both the Arctic and Antarctic. Arctic late-summer sea ice will disappears almost entirely by the latter part of the 21st century. This meltdown of snow coupled with high seawater expansion will wipe out completely low level islands and coastlines.

Climate change is a big threat to the basic elements of life for man. Declining crop yields will leave millions of people without the ability to produce or purchase sufficient food. Crop yields will increase at mid to high latitudes for moderate temperature rises but then eventually this increase will reduce with greater warming.

Acidification of oceans as a result of rising carbon dioxide levels will have major effects on marine ecosystems such as fish which is food to humans. Vector-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue fever will become more widespread with higher temperatures.

Global warming will certainly induce sudden changes in weather patterns like the global winds circulations which will result in severe consequences for water availability, flooding, drought, landslides, food and energy. This will threaten the livelihoods of man as he competes for natural resources. The result is endless conflicts over resources which are resulting in huge loss of lives.

And may you do Mother Nature a favour, if you will: Mother Nature is now out of Balance and that is the reason why you and I have to take action today on this Climate Change and Global Warming. Take action now, do something (and that include putting pressure on all Governments to be 100 percent compliance to UNEP resolutions on Climate Change and Global Warming so that we can attain a near normal balance to mother nature).

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