Climate change caused by human activities has led to widespread and rapid changes in the atmosphere, oceans, cryosphere, and biosphere. Its consequences and dangerous weather conditions are undoing developmental achievements and threatening the well-being of people and the planet, according to a new multi-agency report coordinated by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
Greenhouse gas concentrations are at record levels, driving future temperature increases. The gap between goals and actual emissions remains large. Global greenhouse gas emissions increased by 1.2 percent from 2021 to 2022, reaching 57.4 billion tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent. Global average concentrations of CO2, methane, and nitrous oxide also reached new records.
According to current policies, there is a two-thirds chance that global warming will reach 3°C this century, the “United in Science” report states. To limit global warming to below 2°C and 1.5°C (above pre-industrial levels), global emissions by 2030 must decrease by 28 percent and 42 percent, respectively, compared to the levels projected by current policies.
This report explores how advances in natural and social sciences, new technologies, and innovations are improving our understanding of Earth’s systems and could be key to adapting to climate change, reducing disaster risk, and achieving sustainable development.
More:
- July Sets New Temperature Records
- How Modern Aircraft Flights Affect the Climate
- How Extreme Temperatures Affect the Global Economy and Workers’ Health
Urgent action is needed to reduce emissions and adapt to climate change. However, one in six countries still lacks a national adaptation plan, and a significant financial gap remains, with a decline in international public funding for adaptation since 2020.
“We need urgent and ambitious action now to support sustainable development, climate action, and disaster risk reduction. The decisions we make today could be the difference between future collapse or a breakthrough towards a better world,” said Celeste Saulo, WMO Secretary-General.
The United Nations Future Summit offers a unique opportunity to revitalize and recommit to global goals, according to the report, which was compiled by a consortium of United Nations agencies, meteorological organizations, and scientific and research bodies. The report also includes contributions from young people and early-career scientists, who are the changemakers for the future.
Advances in meteorology, climate, water, and related ecological and social sciences offer tremendous opportunities to fully support the realization of global goals, including the Paris Agreement, the 2030 Agenda, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, and the EW4All initiative.
Revolution in Weather Forecasting
Thanks to rapid advancements, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are enabling more accurate weather modeling that is faster, cheaper, and more accessible to lower-income countries with limited computational resources. Some estimates suggest that AI/ML has the potential to predict hazardous events such as tropical cyclones and longer-term phenomena like El Niño and La Niña.
While there are great opportunities, we face many challenges, particularly with limited data quality and availability. Current AI/ML models do not account for more unpredictable variables related to the ocean, land, cryosphere, and the carbon cycle.
Energetics Portal
