Climate Change Science Compendium 2009
Managing Editor: Catherine P. McMullen
Associate Editor: Jason Jabbour
Publisher: United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
Published: October 2009
Pages: 72
The Climate Change Science Compendium is a review of some 400 major scientific contributions to our understanding of Earth Systems and climate that have been released through peer-reviewed literature or from research institutions over the last three years, since the close of research for consideration by the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report.
The Compendium is not a consensus document or an update of any other process. Instead, it is a presentation of some exciting scientific findings, interpretations, ideas, and conclusions that have emerged among scientists.
Focusing on work that brings new insights to aspects of Earth System Science at various scales, it discusses findings from the International Polar Year and from new technologies that enhance our abilities to see the Earth’s Systems in new ways. Evidence of unexpected rates of change in Arctic sea ice extent, ocean acidification, and species loss emphasizes the urgency needed to develop management strategies for addressing climate change.
The science has become more irrevocable than ever: Climate change is happening. The evidence is all around us. And unless we act, we will see catastrophic consequences including rising sea levels, droughts and famine, and the loss of up to a third of the world’s plant and animal species. We need a new global agreement to tackle climate change, and this must be based on the soundest, most robust and up-to-date science available. Through its overview of the latest definitive science, this Climate Change Science Compendium reaffirms the strong evidence outlined in the IPCC’s 4th Assessment Report that climate change is continuing apace. In fact, this report shows that climate change is accelerating at a much faster pace than was previously thought by scientists. New scientific evidence suggests important tipping points, leading to irreversible changes in major Earth systems and ecosystems, may already have been reached or even overtaken.
Climate change, more than any other challenge facing the world today, is a planetary crisis that will require strong, focused global action. As pressures build for an internationally agreed response, we now have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to come together and address climate change through a newly invigorated multilateralism. This will be our chance to put in place a climate change agreement that all nations can embrace – an agreement that is equitable, balanced and comprehensive. This Climate Change Science Compendium is a wake-up call. The time for hesitation is over. We need the world to realize, once and for all, that the time to act is now and we must work together to address this monumental challenge. This is the moral challenge of our generation.
Contents
Front Cover
Foreword
Foreword ii
Preface iii
Table of Contents
Earth Systems 1
Map: Climate Anomalies 2
Significant climate anomalies from 2007 to 2009
Introduction 4
How Earth System Science Works 6
Reading the Signs 8
Reasons for Concern 9
Earth’s Ice 13
Glaciers and Ice Caps 14
Arctic Ice 17
Outlet Glaciers in Transition 20
Greenland Ice 20
Antarctic Ice 21
Earth’s Oceans 25
Increased Temperatures 26
Sea-level Rise 26
Circulation 28
Acidification 29
Cumulative Effects 31
Earth’s Ecosystems 33
Marine Ecosystems 34
Terrestrial Ecosystems 37
Shifting Climatic Zones 38
Ecosystem Adaptation 41
Systems Management 43
Managing the Unavoidable 44
Avoiding the Unmanageable 51
Continuing Scientific Role 53
Glossary 54
Acronyms and Abbreviations 58
References 59
Acknowledgements 68
Managing Editor: Catherine P. McMullen
Associate Editor: Jason Jabbour
Publisher: United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
Published: October 2009
Pages: 72
The Climate Change Science Compendium is a review of some 400 major scientific contributions to our understanding of Earth Systems and climate that have been released through peer-reviewed literature or from research institutions over the last three years, since the close of research for consideration by the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report.
The Compendium is not a consensus document or an update of any other process. Instead, it is a presentation of some exciting scientific findings, interpretations, ideas, and conclusions that have emerged among scientists.
Focusing on work that brings new insights to aspects of Earth System Science at various scales, it discusses findings from the International Polar Year and from new technologies that enhance our abilities to see the Earth’s Systems in new ways. Evidence of unexpected rates of change in Arctic sea ice extent, ocean acidification, and species loss emphasizes the urgency needed to develop management strategies for addressing climate change.
The science has become more irrevocable than ever: Climate change is happening. The evidence is all around us. And unless we act, we will see catastrophic consequences including rising sea levels, droughts and famine, and the loss of up to a third of the world’s plant and animal species. We need a new global agreement to tackle climate change, and this must be based on the soundest, most robust and up-to-date science available. Through its overview of the latest definitive science, this Climate Change Science Compendium reaffirms the strong evidence outlined in the IPCC’s 4th Assessment Report that climate change is continuing apace. In fact, this report shows that climate change is accelerating at a much faster pace than was previously thought by scientists. New scientific evidence suggests important tipping points, leading to irreversible changes in major Earth systems and ecosystems, may already have been reached or even overtaken.
Climate change, more than any other challenge facing the world today, is a planetary crisis that will require strong, focused global action. As pressures build for an internationally agreed response, we now have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to come together and address climate change through a newly invigorated multilateralism. This will be our chance to put in place a climate change agreement that all nations can embrace – an agreement that is equitable, balanced and comprehensive. This Climate Change Science Compendium is a wake-up call. The time for hesitation is over. We need the world to realize, once and for all, that the time to act is now and we must work together to address this monumental challenge. This is the moral challenge of our generation.
Contents
Front Cover
Foreword
Foreword ii
Preface iii
Table of Contents
Earth Systems 1
Map: Climate Anomalies 2
Significant climate anomalies from 2007 to 2009
Introduction 4
How Earth System Science Works 6
Reading the Signs 8
Reasons for Concern 9
Earth’s Ice 13
Glaciers and Ice Caps 14
Arctic Ice 17
Outlet Glaciers in Transition 20
Greenland Ice 20
Antarctic Ice 21
Earth’s Oceans 25
Increased Temperatures 26
Sea-level Rise 26
Circulation 28
Acidification 29
Cumulative Effects 31
Earth’s Ecosystems 33
Marine Ecosystems 34
Terrestrial Ecosystems 37
Shifting Climatic Zones 38
Ecosystem Adaptation 41
Systems Management 43
Managing the Unavoidable 44
Avoiding the Unmanageable 51
Continuing Scientific Role 53
Glossary 54
Acronyms and Abbreviations 58
References 59
Acknowledgements 68