Global Warming
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Dangerous heat waves are becoming more common. Extreme storm events are increasing in many areas. More severe droughts are occurring in others. We must take immediate action to address global warming or these consequences will continue to intensify, grow ever more costly, and increasingly affect the entire planet—including you, your community, and your family.
The good news is that we have the practical solutions at hand to dramatically reduce our carbon emissions, slow the pace of global warming, and pass on a healthier, safer world to future generations. With your help, we can accomplish it. Even in these difficult times for climate action, we can make a difference. Global warming is happening now.
The planet's temperature is rising. The trend is clear and unmistakable. Every one of the past 40 years has been warmer than the 20th century average. The 12 warmest years on record have all occurred since Globally, the average surface temperature has increased more than one degree Fahrenheit since the late s.
Most of that increase has occurred over just the past three decades. We are the cause. Where does all this carbon come from? The fossil fuels we burn for energy—coal, natural gas, and oil—plus the loss of forests due to deforestation, especially in the tropics. The scientific evidence is clear. Within the scientific community, there is no debate. An overwhelming majority of climate scientists agree that global warming is happening and that human activity is the primary cause.
Global warming is a long-term rise in the average temperature of the Earth's climate system, an aspect of climate change shown by temperature measurements. Vital Signs of the Planet: Global Climate Change and Global Warming. Current news and data streams about global warming and climate change from NASA.
East Coast and Gulf of Mexico. More Frequent and Intense Heat Waves Dangerously hot weather is already occurring more frequently than it did 60 years ago. Costly and Growing Health Impacts Climate change has significant implications for our health, including increased air pollution and a longer and more intense allergy season.
We must significantly reduce the heat-trapping emissions we are putting into the atmosphere. As individuals, we can help by taking action to reduce our personal carbon emissions. But to fully address the threat of global warming, we must demand action from our elected leaders. Reducing tropical deforestation can significantly lower global warming emissions and plays an integral role in a comprehensive long-term solution to global warming.
Climate change has significant implications for our health. Rising temperatures will likely lead to increased air pollution , a longer and more intense allergy season , the spread of insect-borne diseases , more frequent and dangerous heat waves , and heavier rainstorms and flooding.
All of these changes pose serious, and costly, risks to public health.
Global warming
Strong scientific evidence shows that global warming is increasing certain types of extreme weather events , including heat waves, coastal flooding, extreme precipitation events, and more severe droughts. Global warming also creates conditions that can lead to more powerful hurricanes. As temperatures increase, more rain falls during the heaviest downpours, increasing the risk of flooding events.
Archived PDF from the original on 10 July Saving or sinking the Kyoto Protocol? Archived from the original on 29 May Meet our Global Warming Experts. This barrage of misinformation misleads and confuses the public — and makes it more difficult to implement effective solutions. Uses authors parameter CS1 maint:
Very heavy precipitation events, defined as the heaviest one percent of storms, now drop 67 percent more precipitation in the Northeast, 31 percent more in the Midwest and 15 percent more in the Great Plains than they did 50 years ago. Climate change affects a variety of factors associated with drought and is likely to increase drought risk in certain regions.
As temperatures have warmed, the prevalence and duration of drought has increased in the western U. As the climate changes in response to global warming, longer and more severe droughts are projected for the western US.
The resulting dry conditions will increase the pressure on groundwater supplies as more is pumped to meet demand even as less precipitation falls to replenish it. In California, water and wastewater utilities have an opportunity to significantly increase clean energy in the state's water sector. Our aging electricity infrastructure is increasingly vulnerable to the growing consequences of global warming , including sea level rise, extreme heat, heightened wildfire risk, and drought and other water supply issues.
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Reservoirs fill too early and water needs to be released for flood control. Vegetation and soils dry out earlier, setting the stage for longer and more damaging wildfire seasons. Temperatures are rising in the planet's polar regions , especially in the Arctic , and the vast majority of the world's glaciers are melting faster than new snow and ice can replenish them. Scientists expect the rate of melting to accelerate, with serious implications for future sea level rise. Rising temperatures and the accompanying impacts of global warming — including more frequent heat waves, heavier precipitation in some regions, and more severe droughts in others — has significant implications for crop and meat production.
Global warming has the potential to seriously disrupt our food supply, drive costs upward, and affect everything from coffee to cattle , from staple food crops to the garden in your backyard. As global temperatures rise, so too do average sea surface temperatures. These elevated temperatures cause long-term damage to coral reefs. Scientists have documented that sustained water temperatures of as little as one degree Celsius above normal summer maxima can cause irreversible damage.
A changing climate affects the range of plants and animals , changing their behavior and causing disruptions up and down the food chain. The range of some warm-weather species will expand, while those that depend on cooler environments will face shrinking habitats and potential extinction. Scientists know that Earth's climate has changed abruptly in the past. Even though it is unlikely to occur in the near future, global warming may increase the risk of such events.
One of the most significant potential mechanisms is a shift in an ocean circulation pattern known as thermohaline circulation, which would have widespread consequences for Europe and the U. We can reduce global warming emissions and ensure communities have the resources they need to withstand the effects of climate change—but not without you. Your generous support helps develop science-based solutions for a healthy, safe, and sustainable future. Explore the hundreds of US coastal communities that will face chronic inundation and possible retreat as sea levels rise. Rising temperatures are increasing wildfire risk throughout the Western U.
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Sea level is rising—at an accelerating rate—especially along the U. Strong scientific evidence links climate change with increasing heat waves, coastal flooding, and other extreme weather events. Fossil fuel companies and their lobbying groups have been deceiving the public for decades about the facts of global warming. We are closely monitoring the Trump administration—and fighting back whenever science is attacked, undermined, or disregarded.
Urge Congress to strengthen the National Flood Insurance Program so that we can better protect people and property from the impacts of climate change, and ensure taxpayer dollars are being spent wisely.