. 24/7 Space News .
EARTH OBSERVATION
Earth's 'vital signs' worsening as humanity's impact deepens
By Patrick GALEY
Paris (AFP) July 28, 2021

The global economy's business-as-usual approach to climate change has seen Earth's "vital signs" deteriorate to record levels, an influential group of scientists said Wednesday, warning that several climate tipping points were now imminent.

The researchers, part of a group of more than 14,000 scientists who have signed on to an initiative declaring a worldwide climate emergency, said that governments had consistently failed to address the root cause of climate change: "the overexploitation of the Earth".

Since a similar assessment in 2019, they noted an "unprecedented surge" in climate-related disasters, including flooding in South America and Southeast Asia, record-shattering heatwaves and wildfires in Australia and the US, and devastating cyclones in Africa and South Asia.

Of 31 "vital signs" -- key metrics of planetary health that include greenhouse gas emissions, glacier thickness, sea-ice extent and deforestation -- they found that 18 hit record highs or lows.

For example, despite a dip in pollution linked to the pandemic, levels of atmospheric CO2 and methane hit all-time highs in 2021.

Greenland and Antarctica both recently showed all-time low levels of ice mass, and glaciers are melting 31 percent faster than they did just 15 years ago, the authors said.

Both ocean heat and global sea levels set new records since 2019, and the annual loss rate of the Brazilian Amazon reached a 12-year high in 2020.

Echoing previous research, they said that forest degradation linked to fire, drought and logging was causing parts of the Brazilian Amazon to now act as a source of carbon, rather than absorb the gas from the atmosphere.

Livestock such as cows and sheep are now at record levels, numbering more than four billion and with a mass exceeding that of all humans and wild land mammals combined, they said.

Tim Lenton, director of the University of Exeter's Global Systems Institute and study co-author, said the recent record-breaking heatwave in the Western United States and Canada showed that the climate had already begun to "behave in shocking, unexpected ways".

"We need to respond to the evidence that we are hitting climate tipping points with equally urgent action to decarbonise the global economy and start restoring instead of destroying nature," he said.

- 'Address the root cause' -

The researchers said there was "mounting evidence that we are nearing or have already crossed" a number of climate tipping points.

These include melting of the Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets, which may now be irreversible on a centuries-long time scale, regardless of how or if humankind slashes its emissions.

They said increasing ocean deoxygenation and warming waters were threatening warm-water coral reefs, upon which half a billion people rely for food, income and storm protection.

"Given these alarming developments, we need short, frequent, and easily accessible updates on the climate emergency," said the study, published in the journal BioScience.

The authors echoed previous calls for transformative change in six areas: eliminating fossil fuels, slashing pollutants, restoring ecosystems, switching to plant-based diets, moving away from indefinite growth models, and stabilising the human population.

They also called for climate change education to be included in school core curriculums globally in order to raise awareness.

In the immediate term, they proposed a trio of emergency responses to the climate emergency.

These consisted of "a significant carbon price", a global phase-out and ban of fossil fuels, and the development of strategic climate reserves such as restoring and maintaining carbon sinks and biodiversity hotspots.

"We need to stop treating the climate emergency as a stand-alone issue -- global heating is not the sole symptom of our stressed Earth system," said William Ripple, distinguished professor of ecology at Oregon State University's College of Forestry.

"Policies to combat the climate crisis or any other symptoms should address their root cause: human overexploitation of the planet."


Related Links
Earth Observation News - Suppiliers, Technology and Application


Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly


paypal only
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal


EARTH OBSERVATION
China launches home-grown aeronautic remote-sensing system
Beijing (XNA) Jul 24, 2021
China's new aeronautic system for conducting detailed observations and monitoring of Earth's surface passed its final acceptance stage on Thursday and is now formally in operation. The Chinese Aeronautic Remote Sensing System, which consists of two medium-sized manned aircraft together with a range of remote-sensing technologies, was developed by the Aerospace Information Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. According to Ding Chibiao, vice-president of the institute, aerona ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

EARTH OBSERVATION
Russia launches Nauka module to space station after years of delay

Blue Origin's first crewed flight minted four new astronauts

World's richest man Jeff Bezos blasts into space

With the HUMANS project, a message that space is for everyone

EARTH OBSERVATION
NASA conducts 5th test in RS-25 series

ESA advances Vega rocket evolution beyond 2025

Roscosmos says US greenlit import of Russia's RD-181M rocket engines

'I pump but don't dump' bitcoin, says Musk

EARTH OBSERVATION
Aerial Scouting of 'Raised Ridges' for Ingenuity's Flight 10

Meet the Martian meteorite hunters

Martian global dust storm ended winter early in the south

NASA Perseverance Mars Rover to acquire first sample

EARTH OBSERVATION
How Chinese astronauts stay healthy in space

China's five-star red flag flies proudly on red planet

China's Commercial Space Industry

Exercise bike in space helps keep crew fit

EARTH OBSERVATION
Funding partnerships launch the UK-Australia Space Bridge

Space, the final frontier for billionaire Richard Branson

Department of Space's commercial arm NewSpace India can also lease ISRO assets

OneWeb and BT to explore rural connectivity solutions for UK

EARTH OBSERVATION
Facebook assembles team to build 'metaverse'

Water as a metal - detected at BESSY II

Metallic glass gears up for 'Cobots,' Coatings, and More

Redwire to demonstrate In-Space Additive Manufacturing on ISS for Lunar operations

EARTH OBSERVATION
From the sun to the stars: A journey of exoplanet discovery begins

ALMA images moon-forming disk around alien world

Planetary shields will buckle under stellar winds from their dying stars

First measurement of isotopes in atmosphere of exoplanet

EARTH OBSERVATION
Juno tunes into Jovian radio triggered by Jupiter's volcanic moon Io

Ride with Juno as it flies past Jupiter and Ganymede

The mystery of what causes Jupiter's X-ray auroras is solved

Surface of Jupiter's moon Europa churned by small impacts









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.