Thu 3 Jun 2021 12.34 EDT
Ice sheets and ocean currents at risk of climate tipping points can destabilise each other as the world heats up, leading to a domino effect with severe consequences for humanity, according to a risk analysis.
Tipping points occur when global heating pushes temperatures beyond a critical threshold, leading to accelerated and irreversible impacts. Some large ice sheets in Antarctica are thought to already have passed their tipping points, meaning large sea-level rises in coming centuries.
The new research examined the interactions between ice sheets in West Antarctica, Greenland, the warm Atlantic Gulf Stream and the Amazon rainforest. The scientists carried out 3m computer simulations and found domino effects in a third of them, even when temperature rises were below 2C, the upper limit of the Paris agreement.
Social tipping points: Slouching toward climate salvation
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Social tipping points: World slouches toward climate salvation
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Social tipping points: slouching toward climate salvation
Issued on:
02/03/2021 - 15:36 7 min
Paris (AFP)
The world appears to have finally woken up to the existential threat of global warming, and the drive to fix the problem is accelerating across the board.
The planet s biggest carbon polluters –- China, US, EU -– vow carbon neutrality by mid-century; solar and wind power continued to surge even as global GDP shrank five percent last year; two-thirds of humanity see a climate emergency ; a top-five automaker says it will only make zero-emissions vehicles after 2035; major investors recoil from coal, while fossil fuels companies shrivel in value.