Climate Change
It's real. It's happening. It's accelerating. And it's our fault. Human activity — particularly the production of greenhouse gasses from fossil fuel emissions — is reshaping our planet, effecting rapid environmental change at a rate never seen before. Global temperature averages are creeping upward, seas are warming, rising and becoming more acidic, and extreme weather events such as droughts, wildfires, floods and powerful storms are more commonplace. Here's where you'll find the latest on the effects of climate change, and the measures that scientists, world leaders and innovators are taking to reduce our harmful impact on the planet and mitigate the damage already done.
Latest about Climate Change
Scientists say they can now forecast a strong El Niño years in advance
By Kristel Tjandra published
Scientists used thousands of years of past climate data to show that El Niño Southern Oscillations can be predicted more than two years in advance.
'The last 12 months have broken records like never before': Earth exceeds 1.5 C warming every month for entire year
By Ben Turner published
Every month has broken the temperature record of the previous for the past 12 months, and the signs of climate breakdown are already here, a new analysis shows.
Gulf Stream's fate to be decided by climate 'tug-of-war'
By Ben Turner published
New research suggests that runoff from the Greenland Ice Sheet could prevent icebergs from disrupting key ocean currents. But some scientists have cautioned that other factors may be at play.
Is Earth really getting too hot for people to survive?
By Scott Denning published
To assess risk from heat, scientists use the "wet bulb temperature," looking at the point where the human body isn't able to let enough heat out.
Arctic 'zombie fires' rising from the dead could unleash vicious cycle of warming
By Sebastian Wieczorek, Eoin O'Sullivan, Kieran Mulchrone published
Zombie fires that burn underground over winter may be a case of climate change-driven spontaneous combustion, new research reveals.
Cutting pollution from the shipping industry accidentally increased global warming, study suggests
By Ben Turner published
A reduction in sulfur dioxide emissions may have caused "80% of the measured increase in planetary heat uptake since 2020."
The 165-year reign of oil is coming to an end. But will we ever be able to live without it?
By Hannah Osborne published
Like whale blubber, oil as a dominant source of energy will gradually be phased out over the next decades. Here's what that transition may look like.
Warm ocean water is rushing beneath Antarctica's 'Doomsday Glacier,' making its collapse more likely
By Ben Turner published
Warm seawater flowing into the glacier's underside could significantly accelerate the process of its collapse.
Tree rings reveal summer 2023 was the hottest in 2 millennia
By Sascha Pare published
Tree rings suggest the Northern Hemisphere summer of 2023 was the hottest in 2,000 years, with temperatures exceeding those of the coldest summer in the same period by 7 degrees Fahrenheit (3.9 Celsius).
Sign up for the Live Science daily newsletter now
Get the world’s most fascinating discoveries delivered straight to your inbox.