UK gears for hottest day as study says ‘no doubt left’ on global warming
Major historical data shows current warming is unprecedented in past 2,000 years
The scientific consensus that humans are causing global warming is likely to have passed 99%, according to unprecedented research.
“Three studies published in Nature and Nature Geoscience use extensive historical data to show there has never been a period in the last 2,000 years when temperature changes have been as fast and extensive as in recent decades,” reports The Guardian.
It comes as Britain braces for the hottest day on record. The Met Office has said there is a 70% chance of temperatures beating the current record of 38.5C from August 2003. Heights of 39C are forecast in southern and eastern England later today.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The Guardian notes that Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands have all recorded their highest ever temperatures “as the second extreme heatwave in as many months to be linked by scientists to the climate emergency grips the continent”.
Clare Nullis, a World Meteorological Organization spokeswoman, told The Guardian that the current heatwaves bore the “hallmark of climate change”. The extreme events were “becoming more frequent, they’re starting earlier, and they’re becoming more intense”, she said. “It’s not a problem that’s going to go away.”
Meanwhile, the experts in Nature and Nature Geoscience say that historic events – such as the Roman Warm Period, which ran from AD 250 to AD 400, and the Little Ice Age, which saw temperatures drop for centuries from the 1300s - cannot compare with the scale of warming seen over the last century.
“That's significant,” says ABC News, “because climate change deniers have sometimes pointed to [those events] to argue that the current global warming is one among multiple similar global climate events.”
The new research concluded that the current warming rate is higher than any observed previously and that the new findings destroy the claims of climate sceptics.
“We find that the warmest period of the past two millennia occurred during the 20th Century for more than 98% of the globe,” one of their reports states. “This provides strong evidence that anthropogenic (human induced) global warming is not only unparalleled in terms of absolute temperatures but also unprecedented in spatial consistency within the context of the past 2,000 years.”
Professor Mark Maslin, from University College London, who wasn't part of the studies, says “This paper should finally stop climate change deniers claiming that the recent observed coherent global warming is part of a natural climate cycle.”
Network Rail warned of disruption in areas where tracks were at risk of buckling - with many rail firms warning passengers not to travel. Public Health England has maintained a level three heat health watch for eastern areas of England.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
How powerful is Iran?
Today's big question Islamic republic is facing domestic dissent and 'economic peril' but has a vast military, dangerous allies and a nuclear threat
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Olympics 2024: is Paris ready to party?
Talking Point Build-up to this summer's Games 'marred' by rows over national identity, security and pollution
By The Week UK Published
-
Solo travel: the 'ultimate indulgence in 2024'
The Week Recommends Why more of us are choosing to go on holiday on our own
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
Why curbing methane emissions is tricky in fight against climate change
The Explainer Tackling the second most significant contributor to global warming could have an immediate impact
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
How the EU undermines its climate goals with animal farming subsidies
Under the radar Bloc's agricultural policy incentivises carbon-intensive animal farming over growing crops, despite aims to be carbon-neutral
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Why are people and elephants fighting in Sri Lanka?
Under The Radar Farmers encroaching into elephant habitats has led to deaths on both sides
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
How climate change is contributing to global unrest
In Depth Some experts argue that global warming can be tied to rising levels of violence around the world
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Why last-chance tourism is the latest controversial travel trend
The Explainer Race to visit places threatened by climate change 'before it's too late'
By Austin Chen, The Week UK Published
-
The 5 biggest corporate greenwashing fines
The Explainer Pretending to be green can be expensive
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
How air pollution affects the brain
The Explainer Breathing fresh air is becoming more rare
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
It might be time to add a new hurricane category
Under the Radar Any way the wind blows
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published