A report issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), one of the leading world bodies for the assessment of climate change, said that humanity needed to act now or natural consequences could prove more disastrous.
The report, which is the first major review of its kind since 2013, was released on Monday by the IPCC ahead of the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) summit in November.
UN scientists found that temperatures on Earth will rise by about 1.5°C in around two decades, adding that a near-2 meter rise in sea levels by the end of this century “cannot be ruled out.” More heatwaves, droughts and flooding, among other disasters, are expected as well.
It also found that since 1970, global surface temperatures have risen faster than in any other 50-year period over the past 2,000 years.
The report is a “reality check,” giving a clearer picture of the climate in the past, present and future, the IPCC said.
“Climate change is already affecting every region on Earth, in multiple ways,” IPCC Working Group Co-Chair Panmao Zhai said. “The changes we experience will increase with additional warming.”
Scientists and experts acknowledge that while the news is grim, the time to act is now. However, the global warming will worsen and can’t be stopped over the next three decades, the UN report concluded. Mostly because the world’s nations delayed so long in curbing emissions. A hotter future is now essentially locked in.
