Annual Greenhouse Gas Index (AGGI), 1750-2019. For 2019, the AGGI was a record high 1.45, representing an increase in total direct radiative forcing of 45% since 1990. The increase in radiative forcing from CO2 alone since 1990 was 60.6%. Pre-1978 changes in the CO2-equivalent abundance and AGGI are based on the ongoing measurements of all greenhouse gases reported here, measurements of CO2 going back to the 1950s from C.D. Keeling (Keeling et al., 1958), and atmospheric changes derived from air trapped in ice and snow above glaciers (Machida et al., 1995, Battle et al., 1996, Etheridge, et al., 1996; Butler, et al., 1999). Equivalent CO2 atmospheric amounts (in ppm) are derived with the relationship between CO2 concentrations and radiative forcing from all long-lived greenhouse gases. Graphic: Butler and Montzka, 2020 / NOAA

NOAA Annual Greenhouse Gas Index reached another record high in 2019 – Total direct radiative forcing has increased 45 percent since 1990

14 May 2020 (NOAA) – […] The NOAA monitoring program provides high-precision measurements of the global abundance and distribution of long-lived greenhouse gases that are used to calculate changes in radiative climate forcing. Air samples are collected through the NOAA/GML global air sampling network, including a cooperative program for the carbon gases which provides samples […]

Map showing observed global extreme humid heat. Color symbols represent the 99.9th percentile of observed daily maximum TW for 1979–2017 for HadISD stations with at least 50 percent data availability over this period. Marker size is inversely proportional to station density. Graphic: Raymond, et al., 2020 / Science Advances

Dangerous humid heat extremes occurring decades earlier than expected – “We are already locked in to large increases in the frequency and intensity of extreme humid heat events, and the risk is much larger than most people appreciate”

8 May 2020 (NOAA) – Oppressively hot summer days often evoke the expression, “it’s not the heat, it’s the humidity.” That sticky, tropical-like air combined with high temperatures is more than unpleasant — it makes extreme heat a greater health risk. Climate models project that combinations of heat and humidity could reach deadly thresholds for […]

Map showing change in global daily fossil CO2 emissions, 1 January 2020 - 20 May 2020 Video: Le Quéré, et al., 2020 / Nature Climate Change

COVID-19 crisis causes 17 percent drop in global carbon emissions – “The drop in emissions is substantial but illustrates the challenge of reaching our Paris climate commitments”

19 May 2020 (UEA) – The COVID-19 global lockdown has had an “extreme” effect on daily carbon emissions, but it is unlikely to last – according to a new analysis by an international team of scientists. The study published in the journal Nature Climate Change shows that daily emissions decreased by 17% – or 17 […]

Enhanced infrared image of Tropical Cyclone Amphan nearing landfall in far eastern India at 0200Z (7:30 am EDT) Wednesday, 20 May 2020. Graphic: CIMSS / SSEC / UW-Madison

Kolkata devastated as Cyclone Amphan kills scores in India and Bangladesh – “We are facing three crises: the coronavirus, the thousands of migrants who are returning home, and now the cyclone”

By Hannah Ellis-Petersen and Shaikh Azizur Rahman 21 May 2020 KOLKATA (The Guardian) – The Indian city of Kolkata has been left devastated by the worst cyclone it has seen in 100 years, which swept through India and Bangladesh on Wednesday and killed at least 84 people. Kolkata, home to almost 15 million people, bore […]

An aerial view of floodwaters flowing from the Tittabawassee River into the lower part of downtown Midland on 20 May 2020 in Midland, Michigan. Thousands of residents have been ordered to evacuate after two dams in Sanford and Edenville collapsed causing water from the Tittabawassee River to flood nearby communities. Photo: Gregory Shamus / Getty Images

Two Michigan dams breached, thousands evacuated amid “devastating” record flooding – “It’s hard to believe that we’re in the midst of a 100-year crisis – a global pandemic – and a flooding event that looks to be the worst in 500 years”

By Elisha Fieldstadt and Doha Madani21 May 2020 (NBC News) – About 11,000 people in central Michigan were told to evacuate their homes after rapidly rising water overwhelmed dams, creating what the National Weather Service called a “life-threatening situation.” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said the destruction in Midland County caused by the failures of the Edenville […]

Microwave satellite image of Cyclone Amphan's inner core on 19 May 2020, showing the exposed eyewall on the storm's eastern side. This is indicative of a weaker storm. Graphic: U-Wisconsin / CIMSS

Cyclone Amphan, most powerful storm on record in Bay of Bengal, poses extreme storm surge danger for eastern India, Bangladesh – Evacuations slowed by virus

By Andrew Freedman and Joanna Slater 19 May 2020 (The Washington Post) – Category 3 Tropical Cyclone Amphan is barreling northward toward the mouth of the Bay of Bengal on Tuesday and is forecast to make landfall in West Bengal, India, just south of Kolkata, on Wednesday. The storm is prompting officials in the states […]

Mother and son wearing masks stand under a sky tinted red as surrounding bushfires close in, Mallacoota, Australia, 4 January 2020. Photo: Reuters

The age of stability is over, and coronavirus is just the beginning – “Our modern interconnected global economy is much more vulnerable than we thought”

By Wolfgang Knorr 16 April 2020 (The Conversation) – Humanity has only recently become accustomed to a stable climate. For most of its history, long ice ages punctuated with hot spells alternated with short warm periods. Transitions from cold to warm climates were especially chaotic. Then, about 10,000 years ago, the Earth suddenly entered into a […]

A healthcare worker stands in a crosswalk to block hundreds of pro-death pro-Covid protesters in Denver, on 19 April 2020. Photo: Alyson McClaran / Reuters

Are we finally seeing science denialism for the death wish it is? “Denying the severity of COVID-19 is tantamount to denying the worth of the thousands who have died and the thousands more who will”

By Heather Houser 16 April 2020 (the Austin Statesman) – Every day it seems we read headlines that connect science denialism to cruel indifference and death. Just recently, when talking about the initial COVID-19 response, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi asserted that ”[Trump’s] denial at the beginning was deadly.” In Arizona, some residents called […]

Simulated high temperatures in Florida on Tuesday, 14 April 2020 by the American NAM model. Graphic: WeatherBell

Miami is shattering heat records during a wildly-warm start to 2020 – Most of Florida has endured record heat in the past four weeks

By Matthew Cappucci 15 April 2020 (The Washington Post) – Florida is supposed to be warm. After all, it’s, well, Florida. But temperatures in the Sunshine State have been shattering records and rivaling typical readings during the heart of summer. Miami even endured its earliest heat wave on record last week, when it hit at […]

Locusts swarm in East Africa, 13 February 2020. Video: Channel 4 News / YouTube

East Africa faces dual shock from coronavirus and locust swarms – “My entire life in the world, I haven’t seen something like this before”

By Elliot Smith 23 March 2020 (CNBC) – Already being ravaged by the worst infestation of desert locusts in 70 years, East African economies are now staring down the barrel of the coronavirus pandemic. The region was the standout performer for economic growth in the subcontinent prior to the locust outbreak, which threatens the food security […]

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