Climate
change by the numbers: The worst is yet to come
CO2
levels went through the roof in 2013, as the world tried — and
mostly failed — to slow down warming
LINDSAY
ABRAMS
30
December, 2013
“We
will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that the
failure to do so would betray our children and future generations,”
President Obama announced back
in January at his second-term inauguration. Thus began another
year of steady climate change, continued pollution of the atmosphere
and half-hearted attempts at changing the world’s dire trajectory.
By
many measures, 2013 wasn’t particularly extreme: it it wasn’t the
hottest we’ve ever seen; its storms, by and large, weren’t the
most devastating. Much of what occurred can best be seen as a sign of
things to come. Droughts, believed to be exacerbated
by climate change,
will become more
widespread.
Wildfires are expected to get bigger,
longer and smokier by
2050. Twelve months, after all, is but a short moment in Earth’s
history. Only in the future, looking back, will we be able to
recognize the true significance of many of this year’s big numbers:
7:
Where 2013 ranks
among the warmest years in history, according to the World
Meteorological Association. Tied with 2003, the ranking is based on
the year’s first nine months, during which average temperatures
were 0.86°F above the 1960-1991 global average.
395.5:
The average
concentration levels of CO2,
in parts per million (ppm), observed in the atmosphere through
November.
400:
The ”milestone,”
in parts per million of atmospheric CO2, that was temporarily crossed
in May. It was the first time carbon levels crossed that boundary in
55 years of record-keeping — and possibly in 3 million years of
history on Earth.
95:
Percent certainty with which IPCC
scientists say
climate change is caused by human activity, a confidence level up
from 90 percent in 1997.
1,100: Amount
by which EPA
regulations proposed
in September would limit emissions from new coal-fired power plants,
in pounds of CO2 per hour. The average plant currently emits CO2 at a
rate of 1,800 pounds per hour.
25:
The factor by which the concentration of PM 2.5 — the part of air
pollution most harmful to human health — exceeded the amount
considered safe in the U.S. when Beijing’s
first “airpocalypse” occurred in
January
1,000: Air
pollution levels in the Chinese city of Harbin, in micrograms per
cubic meter of PM 2.5, during October’s
smog emergency. According
to the World Health Organization, it shouldn’t exceed 20; anything
higher than 300 is considered hazardous.
3.8: Percent
by which Japan said it
would try to reduce its emissions by 2020, down from its
previous pledge of 25 percent.
1.97
million: The
annual minimum
extent of Arctic sea ice,
in square miles. Melting this year wasn’t as severe as it was in
2012, but the remaining area was still 17 percent below average —
and the sixth lowest on record.
3.2:
Current
average sea level rise, in millimeters per year. Sea levels reached
a record high in
March.
104.6:
The
average country-wide temperature, in degrees Fahrenheit, on January 7
in Australia — the continent’s hottest
day on record,
in its hottest
month on record.
121.3:
The
temperature reading,
in degrees Fahrenheit, in the South Australian town of Moomba on
January 12.
90:
Percent
confidence with which researchers at the University of Melbourne
concluded, in
July, that “human influences on the Australian atmosphere had
dramatically increased the odds of extreme temperatures.”
129.2:
The temperature, in degrees Fahrenheit, recorded in California’s
Death Valley on June 30, setting
a record for
the hottest temperature ever recorded on Earth for that month.
2:
The
weather emergency level declared
by officials
in China during this summer’s heat wave — a number normally
reserved for typhoons and floods.
10: The number
of consecutive months during
which over half of the contiguous U.S. experienced moderate or severe
drought, which finally fell below 50 percent in mid-April 2013.
72:
Percent of land area in 10 Western states in drought conditions after
a record-breaking
heat wave
in June.
3.95: Inches
of rain that fell from January to November in San Francisco. When the
final numbers come in, it’s likely that California will be found to
have had its driest
year
on record.
257,000:
Acres of land burned by the California Rim Fire, the biggest wildfire
in Sierra’s recorded history, which caused over
$50 million
in damage. It was caused by a number of factors, drought
and abnormal seasons included.
5.9
– 7.9: The
amount of rain, in inches, that normally falls over two and a half
months and instead pummeled
central Europe between May 30 and June 1. Floodwaters in
Germany rose
to their highest levels in over 500 years.
1.3:
The
width,
in miles, of the tornado that struck Moore, Oklahoma on May
20. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., caused controversy
when he invoked
the storm during a speech criticizing climate deniers. While
researchers cannot
be sure there was a link between
climate change and the twister, they believe that a warming planet
may host more frequent, stronger storms.
2.6:
The
width, in miles, of the tornado that struck El Reno, Oklahoma ten
days later. It was the widest
ever measured
on Earth.
20
billion: Cost,
in dollars, of plans laid
out by NYC Mayor Bloomberg in June to make infrastructure
improvements, including floodwalls and storm barriers, in preparation
for the effects of climate change.
6,100:
The
most recent death
count from
Typhoon Haiyan, which officially became the deadliest storm in
Philippines’ history. Bodies continue to be recovered.
132:
The
number of countries that walked
out of the U.N. climate talks in Warsaw
in protest over rich nations’ refusal to entertain the idea of
compensation for extreme climate events
90:
The
number of global companies that together account for two-thirds of
greenhouse gas emissions, according
to a report
in the journal Climactic
Change.
7
billion: The
number of “key
individuals”
responsible for climate change. The Onion, as always, is spot on.
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