Climate Change

It's real. It's happening. It's accelerating. And it's our fault. Human activity — particularly the production of greenhouse gasses from fossil fuel emissions — is reshaping our planet, effecting rapid environmental change at a rate never seen before. Global temperature averages are creeping upward, seas are warming, rising and becoming more acidic, and extreme weather events such as droughts, wildfires, floods and powerful storms are more commonplace. Here's where you'll find the latest on the effects of climate change, and the measures that scientists, world leaders and innovators are taking to reduce our harmful impact on the planet and mitigate the damage already done.

Related Topics: Extinction, Global Warming, Deforestation, Heat Wave, Hurricanes

Latest Updates

Resinous trees dot the tundra landscape on northwestern Siberia’s Yamal Peninsula.

Siberian tundra could vanish in less than 500 years

By Stephanie Pappas published

The Siberian tundra will shrink even with ambitious greenhouse gas reductions. Without them, it could disappear altogether.

Climate change is pushing hurricanes to their extremes. In 2018, Hurricane Michael (shown here in this digitally enhanced image) became the first Category 5 hurricane to make landfall on the Florida Panhandle.

Physicists predict Earth will become a chaotic world, with dire consequences

By Paul Sutter published

Humans aren't just making Earth warmer, they are making the climate chaotic, a stark new study suggests.

Man watches bushfire

Humanity locked in a 'spiral of self-destruction' unless we change our perception of risk, UN says

By Jeanna Bryner published

'Optimism, underestimation and invincibility' have pushed humanity into a 'spiral of self-destruction,' new UN Global Assessment Report says

Image of a glacier in Jasper National Park in Canada that has retreated very far.

What is climate change, and how is it affecting Earth?

By Stephanie Pappas published

Climate change is real and humans are causing it.

Supporters of the Fridays for Future climate action movement march as part of a global climate strike on March 25 in Berlin, Germany. The movement is calling particular attention to the current Russian war in Ukraine, warning that the war is distracting world leaders from achieving climate goals and highlights the need for a faster global reduction in fossil fuel dependence.

In global climate strike, youth demand action worldwide

By Mindy Weisberger published

On March 25, thousands of young people around the world mobilized to demand government action to curb climate change.

close-up of a mosquito of the genus culex, against a white background

1st major outbreak of Japanese encephalitis hits Australia

By Nicoletta Lanese published

The disease is typically seen in Asia and the Western Pacific.

A photo of a technician on a roof checking solar panels. Renewable-energy storage involves storing energy from renewable sources such as solar.

How to store renewable energy

By Patrick Pester published

Renewable-energy storage can help humanity reduce its fossil fuel use and combat climate change. Here are some of the best and most promising methods for storing renewable energy.

Aerial view showing smoke rising from an illegal fire at the Amazonia rainforest in Labrea, Amazonas state, Brazil, on September 15, 2021.

Amazon nears 'tipping point' where rainforest could transform into savanna

By Nicoletta Lanese published

The Amazon is losing "resilience," a study shows.

Waves crashed over Newhaven Harbor wall in Newhaven, southern England on Feb. 18, as Storm Eunice brought high winds across the country. Powerful storms such as this are becoming more frequent due to human induced climate change.

Humanity faces 'grave and mounting threat' of climate change — unless we act, IPCC report reveals

By Mindy Weisberger published

Humans are reeling under climate disruption, and there's worse to come, scientists warn in the latest UN climate assessment.

Ukrainian servicemen ride on tanks towards the front line to engage with Russian forces in the Lugansk region of Ukraine, on Feb. 25.

Ukrainian scientists leave international climate report committee, amid safety fears

By Mindy Weisberger published

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has led top Ukrainian scientists to withdraw from final approvals of a landmark climate report.

A recent slowdown in the melting of Iceland’s glaciers is likely caused by a patch of unusually cold water in the North Atlantic Ocean, known as the "Blue Blob," "according to a new study.

Unusually cold 'Blue Blob' is slowing the rapid melting of Iceland's glaciers, but not for long

By Harry Baker published

A new study into a cold patch of the Arctic, known as the "Blue Blob," has shown that it is slowing the rate Iceland's glaciers are melting, but only for a few more decades.

A photo of a methane flare in Chicago.

Massive methane leaks mapped from space

By Patrick Pester published

Using satellite data, scientists have mapped massive methane plumes caused by human activities around the world.

Sunset is coming for South Col Glacier, the highest glacier on Mount Everest.

Mt. Everest's highest glacier lost 2,000 years worth of ice since the 1990s

By Brandon Specktor published

The highest glacier on Mount Everest is losing ice at an alarming rate, new research finds.

Streams and rivers cut through the Greenland ice sheet, pouring water into the Arctic Ocean.

Greenland lost enough ice in last 2 decades to cover entire US in 1.5 feet of water

By Brandon Specktor published

Satellite data shows that Greenland’s ice sheet has lost enough water over 20 years to submerge the entire United States.

Earth seen from 1 million miles (1.6 million km) away. Global warming is the gradual heating of the planet's surface, oceans and atmosphere.

What is global warming?

By Stephanie Pappas published

Global warming is the gradual heating of Earth's surface, oceans and atmosphere.

Trucks removing trees from a forest.

Deforestation: Facts, causes & effects

By Sarah Derouin published

Deforestation can include clearing the land for farming or livestock, or using the timber for fuel, construction or manufacturing.

A deer wanders through heavy smoke in front of a row of burned cars during the Dixie fire in Greenville, California on Aug. 6. The enormous wildfire has been burning since mid-July and is the largest in the state's history.

8 ominous climate milestones reached in 2021

By Mindy Weisberger published

Signs of accelerating global warming abounded this year, but we could still prevent the worst-case scenarios — if we act soon.

Here, a concept image of a futuristic monolith in the desert. This is not an artist's conception of Earth's black box.

Indestructible 'Black Box' will record our planet's demise in minute detail

By Cameron Duke published

The disaster recorder aims to set us on a better path by watching our every move.

Ruins of a church in Hvalsey, a Norse settlement in Greenland. Vikings built the structure around the 14th century.

Epic sea level rise drove Vikings out of Greenland

By Mindy Weisberger published

Climate change that led to sea level rise and severe coastal flooding could explain why the Vikings abandoned their Greenland settlements.

Siberian wildfire have been growing in intensity year on year, with 2021's damage being the worst since record began.

UN confirms hottest temperature ever recorded in the Arctic

By Ben Turner published

The UN says temperatures were "more befitting the Mediterranean than the Arctic."