What is climate change? A really simple guide - BBC News

Temperature rises must slow down if we want to avoid the worst consequences of climate change, scientists say. They say global warming needs to ... Worldtemperaturesarerisingbecauseofhumanactivity,andclimatechangenowthreatenseveryaspectofhumanlife.Leftunchecked,humansandnaturewillexperiencecatastrophicwarming,withworseningdroughts,greatersealevelriseandmassextinctionofspecies.Wefaceahugechallenge,buttherearepotentialsolutions.Whatisclimatechange?Climateistheaverageweatherinaplaceovermanyyears.Climatechangeisashiftinthoseaverageconditions.Therapidclimatechangewearenowseeingiscausedbyhumansusingoil,gasandcoalfortheirhomes,factoriesandtransport.Whenthesefossilfuelsburn,theyreleasegreenhousegases-mostlycarbondioxide(CO2).ThesegasestraptheSun'sheatandcausetheplanet'stemperaturetorise.Theworldisnowabout1.2Cwarmerthanitwasinthe19thCentury-andtheamountofCO2intheatmospherehasrisenby50%.Temperaturerisesmustslowdownifwewanttoavoidtheworstconsequencesofclimatechange,scientistssay.Theysayglobalwarmingneedstobekeptto1.5Cby2100.However,unlessfurtheractionistaken,theplanetcouldstillwarmbymorethan2Cbytheendofthiscentury.Areportin2021bytheClimateActionTrackergroupcalculatedthattheworldwasheadingfor2.4Cofwarmingbytheendofthecentury.Ifnothingisdone,scientiststhinkglobalwarmingcouldexceed4Cinthefuture,leadingtodevastatingheatwaves,millionslosingtheirhomestorisingsealevelsandirreversiblelossofplantandanimalspecies.Whatistheimpactofclimatechange?Extremeweathereventsarealreadymoreintense,threateninglivesandlivelihoods.Withfurtherwarming,someregionscouldbecomeuninhabitable,asfarmlandturnsintodesert.Inotherregions,theoppositeishappening,withextremerainfallcausinghistoricflooding-asseenrecentlyinChina,Germany,BelgiumandtheNetherlands.Peopleinpoorercountrieswillsufferthemostastheydonothavethemoneytoadapttoclimatechange.Manyfarmsindevelopingcountriesalreadyhavetoendureclimatesthataretoohotandthiswillonlygetworse.Ouroceansanditshabitatsarealsounderthreat.TheGreatBarrierReefinAustralia,forexample,hasalreadylosthalfofitscoralssince1995duetowarmerseasdrivenbyclimatechange.Wildfiresarebecomingmorefrequentasclimatechangeincreasestheriskofhot,dryweather.AndasfrozengroundmeltsinplaceslikeSiberia,greenhousegasestrappedforcenturieswillbereleasedintotheatmosphere,worseningclimatechange.Inawarmerworld,animalswillfindithardertofindthefoodandwatertheyneedtolive.Forexample,polarbearscoulddieoutastheicetheyrelyonmeltsaway,andelephantswillstruggletofindthe150-300litresofwateradaytheyneed.Scientistsbelieveatleast550speciescouldbelostthiscenturyifactionisnottaken.Imagesource,GettyImagesImagecaption,Iftemperaturescontinuetorise,almostallwarmwatercoralreefscouldbedestroyedHowwilldifferentpartsoftheworldbeaffected?Climatechangehasdifferenteffectsindifferentareasoftheworld.Someplaceswillwarmmorethanothers,somewillreceivemorerainfallandotherswillfacemoredroughts.Iftemperaturerisecannotbekeptwithin1.5C:TheUKandEuropewillbevulnerabletofloodingcausedbyextremerainfallCountriesintheMiddleEastwillexperienceextremeheatwavesandfarmlandcouldturntodesertIslandnationsinthePacificregioncoulddisappearunderrisingseasManyAfricannationsarelikelytosufferdroughtsandfoodshortagesDroughtconditionsarelikelyinthewesternUS,whileotherareaswillseemoreintensestormsAustraliaislikelytosufferextremesofheatanddroughtImagesource,GettyImagesImagecaption,IntensedownpourscausedfloodinginLondonin2021Whataregovernmentsdoing?Countriesagreeclimatechangecanonlybetackledbyworkingtogether,andinalandmarkagreementinParisin2015,theypledgedtotrytokeepglobalwarmingto1.5C.TheUKishostingasummitforworldleaders,calledCOP26,inNovember,wherecountrieswillsetouttheircarbonreductionplansfor2030.Manycountrieshavepledgedtogettonetzeroby2050.Thismeansreducinggreenhousegasemissionsasmuchaspossibleandbalancingoutremainingemissionsbyabsorbinganequivalentamountfromtheatmosphere.Expertsagreethatthisisachievable,butitwillrequiregovernments,businessesandindividualstomakebigchanges.Whatcanindividualsdo?Majorchangesneedtocomefromgovernmentsandbusinesses,butscientistssaysomesmallchangesinourlivescanlimitourimpactontheclimate:TakefewerflightsLivecar-freeoruseanelectriccarBuyenergyefficientproducts,suchaswashingmachines,whentheyneedreplacingSwitchfromagasheatingsystemtoanelectricheatpumpInsulateyourhome.TheCOP26globalclimatesummitinGlasgowinNovemberisseenascrucialifclimatechangeistobebroughtundercontrol.Almost200countriesarebeingaskedfortheirplanstocutemissions,anditcouldleadtomajorchangestooureverydaylives.WhytheCOP26climatesummitisimportantWhatwillclimatechangelooklikeforyou?WilltheUKmeetitsclimatetargets?HowextremeweatherislinkedtoclimatechangeTopimagefromGettyImages.ClimatestripesvisualisationcourtesyofProfEdHawkinsandUniversityofReading.Imagesource,BBCWhatquestionsdoyouhaveaboutchangesinourclimate?Insomecasesyourquestionwillbepublished,displayingyourname,ageandlocationasyouprovideit,unlessyoustateotherwise.Yourcontactdetailswillneverbepublished.Pleaseensureyouhavereadourterms&conditionsandprivacypolicy.Usethisformtoaskyourquestion: Ifyouarereadingthispageandcan'tseetheformyouwillneedtovisitthemobileversionoftheBBCwebsitetosubmityourquestionorsendthemviaemailtoYourQuestions@bbc.co.uk.Pleaseincludeyourname,ageandlocationwithanyquestionyousendin.Insomecasesyourquestionwillbepublished,displayingyourname,ageandlocationasyouprovideit,unlessyoustateotherwise.Yourcontactdetailswillneverbepublished.Pleaseensureyouhavereadourterms&conditionsandprivacypolicy.Usethisformtoaskyourquestion: Ifyouarereadingthispageandcan'tseetheformyouwillneedtovisitthemobileversionoftheBBCwebsitetosubmityourquestionorsendthemviaemailtoYourQuestions@bbc.co.uk.Pleaseincludeyourname,ageandlocationwithanyquestionyousendin.RelatedTopicsGreenhousegasemissionsOurPlanetNowCarbondioxideExtinctionEffectsofglobalwarmingClimatechangeEnvironmentMoreonthisstoryWhatcoulddisappearon'HothouseEarth'Published7August2018Finalcalltohalt'climatecatastrophe'Published8October2018Why1.5CissoimportantinclimatechangePublished8October2018FivethingswehavelearnedfromtheIPCCreportPublished8October2018Vietnam'schildrenandthefearofclimatechangePublished4October2018Whyshouldwecareaboutclimatechange?Published30November2015Whatdoesoceanacidificationlooklike?Published30November2015AnanimatedjourneythroughtheEarth'sclimatehistoryPublished28November2011AbriefhistoryofclimatechangePublished20September2013AroundtheBBCscience-environment-45792942TopStoriesOmicrondrivesmajorsurgeinSAfricaCovidcasesPublished28minutesagoIndiareportsfirstOmicroncasesPublished1houragoWTAsuspendsChinatournamentsoverPengShuaiPublished4hoursagoFeaturesKashmiriskiertakingIndiatoBeijingOlympicsIslamistsagainstMuhammadcartoonsstagecomebackThestruggletosaveAfghanistan'sstarvingbabiesEpsteinaccusertoBBC:Maxwellamastermanipulator.VideoEpsteinaccusertoBBC:MaxwellamastermanipulatorDraggedupthestairsformyhospitalappointment.VideoDraggedupthestairsformyhospitalappointmentWhenJesusisusedtostealfromhisflockVotersinChilefacetoughchoiceasrun-offloomsWouldyougive10%ofyoursalarytocharity?BBCFuture:ThemedievalDutchsolutiontofloodingElsewhereontheBBC'Itfeelslikethegreatestgift'ChrisonbuyinghishouseinLiverpoolforjust£1Hanukkah:The'truecomfortfood'Fromlovelylatkestodecadentdoughnuts!MostRead1ScientistsfindtriggerforrareAstraZenecaclots2OmicrondrivesmajorsurgeinSAfricaCovidcases3MeghanwinsrulinginMailonSundayprivacyfight4IndiareportsfirstOmicroncases5AlecBaldwinsayshedidn'tfiregunonfilmset6HomeAlonehouseavailabletobookforanight7Pfizerboss:AnnualCovidjabsforyearstocome8FacebookuncoversChinanetworkbehindfakeexpert9Maxwelllawyersseektodiscreditkeyaccuser10TopUSjudgessignalsupportforabortionlimits