NRC releases report on abrupt changes in climate

A new report from the National Research Council warns of abrupt changes in weather patterns due to global warming, according to a release from University of California – Berkeley. The report defines “abrupt changes” as things that will happen in a few years or decades.

The report is titled, “Abrupt Impacts of Climate Change: Anticipating Surprises” and its authors say that the changes they predict are already occurring. As proof, they point to extreme events like droughts, wildfires and quickened arctic ice melt. Monitoring will be key, they say, to identifying and preparing for other changes to come.

Long-term changes, like altered ocean currents and higher average temperatures, depend largely on the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The report’s authors say the world would need to reduce emissions of the gases by 5 percent each year for the next 38 years to limit the temperature increase to 2 degrees Celsius.