2015 was the globe's warmest year on record
Geege Schuman stashed this in Climate Change
Stashed in: Whales!, Bears!, The World, NASA, Weather!, Penguins!, NASA to Me, We Are Doomed, Climate Change!, AMA
Yikes!
2015 was the hottest year for global surface temperatures in recorded history, scientists with NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced on Wednesday.
The findings, concurrently produced by separate NASA and NOAA analyses, also revealed a notable increase in temperature since the last warmest year on record, 2014. Scientists said that the difference, 0.23 degrees Fahrenheit, had only been that high once before, in 1998.
Related: 2015 Was the Second Hottest Year on Record in the U.S.
While 0.23 might not seem like a noteworthy change, it is significant in the broader timeline of changing temperatures. As a NASA time lapse video shows, the around 1.8 Fahrenheit (or 1 degree Celsius) increase since scientists first began tracking global temperatures in the late 19th century is perhaps more drastic than it sounds: climate experts warn that if earth's surface temperatures rise above 2 degrees Celsius, the globe could be in dire environmental straits.
The main driver for the changes, according to NASA and NOAA scientists, has been increases brought on by man-made factors like greenhouse gas emissions — something they said should be noted by policymakers.
Depressing comment is depressing.
Being a fisheries biologist, one of the most unsettling things to me is the rate at which the oceans are warming. Most people have little to no grasp on just how delicate of an ecosystem the oceans really are. Basically, If you enjoy eating or catching saltwater fish, you better enjoy it now while you can. Not to mention that the oceans are the worlds largest carbon sink by miles, but even their rate of CO2 absorption is slowly buckling under the increasing amounts of CO2 that we are pumping into the atmosphere. These levels of CO2 absorption affects everything that lives in the worlds oceans, down to the tiniest phytoplankton. They are slowly becoming more acidic, and if you have ever had any sort of fish tank then you will know that the pH balance of your tank is crucial to all life forms contained within. The effect could be that fish, squid, and other gilled marine animals may find it harder to "breathe", as dissolved oxygen essential for their life becomes difficult to extract as water becomes more acidic. And shellfish, crabs, lobsters, and corals will find it more difficult to build their calcium carbonate shells. In some areas, calcium carbonate shells may even start to dissolve. In short, it's not looking to great for the worlds oceans, as if the constant pollution and waste dumping weren't already a bad enough issue. If you consider that roughly 3 billion people depend upon the oceans as their main source of food, then you will have some grasp of just how dire things will become if the oceans continue to warm at the current rate. Oh yea and a quick shout out to Polar Bears, Penguins, Whales, Dolphins and basically every other marine Mammal that depends upon the ocean for their daily survival. They are valiantly fighting a losing battle against time.
We should built a new habitat for the ocean mammals to live.
Today's Science AMA is the scientists who did this research:
https://reddit.com/r/science/comments/41zr2t/science_ama_series_we_are_gavin_schmidt_and_reto/
I like that caption. :)
Has there been a 'pause' in global warming? (Spoiler: no) pic.twitter.com/YtRpOqlVco
7:58 AM Jan 21 2016