Climate change indicator update
By
Brett Anderson, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Published Oct 27, 2020 4:58 PM EDT
I felt it was a good week to take a look at the latest climate change indicator data and trends for the globe. Most of this information was gathered from NASA and NOAA.
Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration
As of September 2020, measured atmospheric CO2 concentration was at 415 ppm and continues to steadily climb despite the worldwide COVID-19 outbreak.
When we go back as much as 800,000 years we can really see the sharp jump in atmospheric CO2, which began during the industrial revolution and has grown at even higher rates since the middle of the 20th century.
Global average temperature
The 2010-2019 period was easily the warmest decade on record going back to the late 1800s. The globe has warmed about 1.3 deg. C, over the past 100 years.
Global sea level
Average global sea level continues to steadily climb at a current rate of 3.3 mm per year. Sea level rise is not uniform across the world with some regions showing a drop while a vast majority is rising. The combination of thermal expansion and the melting of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets are the main contributors to sea level rise.
Global sea level change going back to 1880.
Ice sheets
Greenland ice sheet mass change.
The Greenland ice sheet is losing 279 billion metric tons of ice/snow per year on average, which is contributing to sea level rise.
Antarctica ice sheet mass change.
The Antarctic ice sheet is on average losing 148 billion metric tons of snow/ice per year.
Arctic sea ice
Arctic sea ice extent minimums over the past 40 years.
Sea ice melt does not contribute to sea level rise, but it is an indicator of climate change, especially in the Arctic region.
The chart above shows the clear decline in the annual sea ice extent minimum during September in the Arctic region. With more open water during the summer months, more heat is absorbed, which warms the Arctic and leads to even more melting.
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Weather Blogs / Global climate change
Climate change indicator update
By Brett Anderson, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Published Oct 27, 2020 4:58 PM EDT
I felt it was a good week to take a look at the latest climate change indicator data and trends for the globe. Most of this information was gathered from NASA and NOAA.
Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration
As of September 2020, measured atmospheric CO2 concentration was at 415 ppm and continues to steadily climb despite the worldwide COVID-19 outbreak.
When we go back as much as 800,000 years we can really see the sharp jump in atmospheric CO2, which began during the industrial revolution and has grown at even higher rates since the middle of the 20th century.
Global average temperature
The 2010-2019 period was easily the warmest decade on record going back to the late 1800s. The globe has warmed about 1.3 deg. C, over the past 100 years.
Global sea level
Average global sea level continues to steadily climb at a current rate of 3.3 mm per year. Sea level rise is not uniform across the world with some regions showing a drop while a vast majority is rising. The combination of thermal expansion and the melting of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets are the main contributors to sea level rise.
Global sea level change going back to 1880.
Ice sheets
Greenland ice sheet mass change.
The Greenland ice sheet is losing 279 billion metric tons of ice/snow per year on average, which is contributing to sea level rise.
Antarctica ice sheet mass change.
The Antarctic ice sheet is on average losing 148 billion metric tons of snow/ice per year.
Arctic sea ice
Arctic sea ice extent minimums over the past 40 years.
Sea ice melt does not contribute to sea level rise, but it is an indicator of climate change, especially in the Arctic region.
The chart above shows the clear decline in the annual sea ice extent minimum during September in the Arctic region. With more open water during the summer months, more heat is absorbed, which warms the Arctic and leads to even more melting.
Report a Typo