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How Do ‘Future Climate Scenarios’ Shape Climate Science and Inform Policy? 

Union of Concerned Scientists

Initially it used four different emission storylines from the Special Report on Emissions Scenarios (SRES) as a scientific basis, however, recognizing the need for a more flexible and policy-relevant framework, scientists developed the Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) for the IPCC reports.

Radiation 243
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Why Were 2023 and 2024 So Hot?

Union of Concerned Scientists

Albedo is the total reflection of incoming solar radiation by Earth. As industrial aerosols decreased due to this new regulation, particularly over the North Atlantic Ocean, the planetary albedo slightly decreased, which means that more incoming solar radiation was absorbed by the planet rather than reflected. What is albedo?

2024 290
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What Is a Climate Model and How Does It Work?

Union of Concerned Scientists

Climate models are the main tool climate scientists use to predict how Earth will respond to more heat-trapping pollutants in the atmosphere. But what exactly is a climate model? Lets start off easy by breaking down the phrase climate model.” What do I mean by this?

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AR6 of the best

Real Climate

As climate scientists we tend to look at the IPCC reports a little differently than the general public might. Here are a few things that mark this report out from previous versions that relate to issues we’ve discussed here before: Extreme events are increasingly connected to climate (duh!) 1981) which can be seen here.

Sea Level 361
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New Climate Research From a Year-Long Arctic Expedition Raises an Ozone Alarm in the High North

Inside Climate News

Warming of the surface of the Arctic is matched by a colder polar vortex high in the atmosphere, which is speeding the breakdown of the Earth’s shield against ultraviolet rays.

Ozone 145
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Science denial is still an issue ahead of COP28

Real Climate

The energy balance of our planet , the radiation arriving and leaving, is continually monitored by a global radiation network at the surface and by dedicated satellites. And yes, also the increase in back-radiation towards the Earth surface from the CO2 greenhouse effect is a measured fact.

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Why Climate Scientists Are Sounding the Alarm on the Ocean Circulation System AMOC

Union of Concerned Scientists

Last month, 44 climate scientists from 15 countries wrote an open letter to the Nordic Council of Ministers highlighting the risk of a potential collapse of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), a critical ocean current system in the Atlantic Ocean. What are climate scientists demanding?