Scientists use tree rings, ice cores, and coral reefs to reconstruct Earth’s climate history because they act as time capsules.
A tree-ring study published in Nature, a scientific journal, on May 14, 2024, concluded 2023 was the warmest year in “at least” 2,000 years (read CNN story here).
Two other studies published in November 2023 concluded humanity “has just lived through the hottest 12-month period in at least 125,000 years, according to one, while the other declared that 2023 is ‘virtually certain’ to be the hottest year in recorded history,” CNN reported at the time (read that story here).
Climate change? What climate change? Well, that debate is over, or should be. The evidence of human-caused global warming is irrefutable.
This doesn’t mean climate denial will go away. Too many livelihoods depend on fossil fuels; and as Upton Sinclair said, “It’s difficult to get someone to understand something when his salary depends on him not understanding it.”
Those people aren’t stupid, they just want to eat.
I don’t think it’s hopeless, but I’m not optimistic. There’s too many of us, and our presence is at the expense of the ecosystem we depend on for survival. We’re too disunited to come together to save ourselves. We can’t prevent wars, let alone climate change.
Very long term, the planet will be fine. Oh, it’ll be very different from the world we know, but that’s not new; species of plants and animals come and go, and this has been happening for hundreds of millions of years. Eventually our species won’t be here … and we won’t be missed.
Image: It won’t be long before you can fry eggs on sidewalks. I’m not saying you’d want to; I’m only saying summers are getting mighty warm.
