Climate Change

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ; PREFACE: Why You Need To Know About Climate Change ; I. Climate Science Basics ; What is the greenhouse effect and how does it warm the Earth? ; Why are scientists so certain the climate system is warming? ; How does global warming increase sea levels and what has been observed to date? ; Where does most of human-caused warming go? ; What fraction of recent global warming is due to human causes vs. natural causes? ; How certain are climate scientists that humans are the primary cause of recent warning? ; How do scientists know that recent climate change is primarily caused by human activities? ; Why has the climate changed in the past, before there were human-caused greenhouse gas emissions? ; What are the climate system's amplifying feedbacks, which turn a moderate initial warming into a big ultimate warming? ; Is the current level of atmospheric CO2 concentration unprecedented in human history? ; Are recent climatic changes unprecedented? ; Has recent human-caused climate change been occurring faster or not as fast as scientists predicted? ; Is there a difference between global warming and climate change? ; What are the sources of the most important human-caused pollutants that drive global warming? ; How does deforestation contribute to warming? ; What is Global Warming Potential and why it is different for various greenhouse gases? ; Why does the rate of warming appear to vary from decade to decade? ; Has global warming slowed down or paused in recent years? ; Can we reach a point where emitting more CO2 into the air will not cause more climate change? ; Have we already crossed tipping points (points of no return) in the climate system? ; II. Extreme Weather and Climate Change ; What is the difference between weather and climate? ; Which extreme weather events are being made worse by climate change, and which are not? ; What is the role of natural climatic variation, such as the El Nino-La Nina cycle, in extreme weather? ; Did climate change cause hurricane Sandy (and why is that the wrong question to ask)? ; How does climate change affect heat waves? ; How does climate change affect droughts? ; How does climate change affect wildfires? ; How does climate change affect the chances of deluges or severe precipitation? ; Does climate change mean more snow or less, worse snow storms or weaker ones? ; How does climate change affect storm surge? ; Is climate change making hurricanes more destructive? ; What is Arctic amplification? ; Is Arctic amplification affecting extreme weather in the northern hemisphere? ; Is climate change affecting tornado formation? ; In a warming world, why do some winters still seem unusually severe? ; III. Projected Climate Impacts ; What kind of impacts can we expect this century from business-as-usual climate change? ; What are the biggest sources of uncertainty in projecting future global warming? What do previous hot periods in Earth's climate tell us about what the future may hold in store? ; How could the thawing permafrost speed up global warming beyond what climate models have projected? ; How could an increase in wildfires speed up global warming beyond what climate models have projected? ; What are some other key positive or amplifying feedbacks affecting the climate system? ; What will the impacts of sea level rise be? ; How will climate change lead to more destructive superstorms this century? ; What kind of droughts can we expect this century? ; What are the expected health impacts of climate change? ; How does global warming affect human productivity? ; Does carbon dioxide at exposure levels expected this century have any direct impacts on human health or cognition? ; What is ocean acidification and why does it matter to sea life? ; What is biodiversity, and how will climate change impact it? ; How will climate change affect the agricultural sector and our ability to feed the world's growing population? ; How is climate change a threat to national, regional, and global security threat? ; What is the plausible best-case scenario for climate change this century? ; What is the plausible worst-case scenario for climate change this century? ; What do scientists mean by "irreversible impacts" and why are they such a concern with climate change? ; IV. Avoiding The Worst Impacts ; What is the biggest source of confusion about what humanity needs to do to avoid the worst climate impacts? ; What is the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change? ; Why did scientists and governments decide 2 C (3.6 F) was the limit beyond which climate change becomes "dangerous" to humanity? ; What kind of greenhouse gas emissions reductions are needed to achieve a 2C target? ; What would the economic cost of meeting the 2C target be? ; What happens if we miss the 2C target? ; Can we adapt to human-caused climate change? ; What is geo-engineering and can it play a major role in reducing the impact of climate change? ; V. Climate Politics and Policies ; What climate policies are governments around the world using to fight climate change? ; What is a carbon tax? ; What are cap-and-trade and carbon trading? ; What is China doing to restrict carbon dioxide emissions? ; What is the United States doing to restrict carbon dioxide emissions? ; How do different political parties view climate science and policies in the United States and around the world? ; Is there are a large-scale effort to spread misinformation on climate science and if so, who funds it? ; What are climate science deniers? ; VI. The Role of Clean Energy ; What kind of changes in our energy system would a 2C target require? ; What is energy efficiency and what role will it play? ; Will nuclear power be a major factor in the effort to minimize climate change? ; What role does natural gas have in the right transition to a 2C world? ; How much can solar power contribute to averting dangerous climate change? ; How big a role will windpower play in averting dangerous climate change? ; What is carbon capture and storage (aka carbon sequestration) and what role can it play? ; What is bio-energy and what is its role in cutting carbon pollution? ; What other carbon-free forms of energy can contribute to cutting greenhouse gas emissions? ; How can we reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the transportation sector? ; What challenges have limited the marketplace success of alternative fuels and alternative fuel vehicles to date? ; What role can electric vehicles play? ; What are hydrogen fuel cells and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles? ; What are the challenges facing hydrogen fuel cell vehicles as a climate solution? ; What role can energy storage play in the clean energy transition? ; What can the agricultural and livestock sector do to minimize climate change ; What is energy conservation and what role can it play? ; VII. Climate Change and You ; How will climate change impact you and your family in the coming decades? ; How might climate change affect the future price of coastal property? ; How might climate change affect decisions about where to live and retire in the coming decades? ; What should students study today if they want to prepare themselves for working in a globally warmed world? ; Should climate change affect how you invest for the future? ; How can you reduce your carbon footprint? ; What role can dietary changes play in reducing your carbon footprint? ; What is the best way to talk to someone who does not accept the growing body of evidence on climate science? ; PRIMARY SOURCES ; ENDNOTES ; INDEX