Heatwaves, wildfires and floods are just the ‘tip of the iceberg’, leading climate scientists say
The “crazy” extreme weather rampaging around the globe in 2023 will become the norm within a decade without dramatic climate action, the world’s leading climate scientists have said.
With fears that humanity’s relentless carbon emissions have finally pushed the climate crisis into a new and accelerating phase of destruction, the Guardian sought the expert assessments of more than 40 scientists from around the world. “The impacts are frighteningly more impactful than I – and many climate scientists I know – expected,” said Prof Krishna AchutaRao at the Indian Institute of Technology.
Heat and wildfire records have been broken around the world in 2023, from North America, to Europe, to Asia. “Our perception is also biased by the fact that we are living more often in uncharted territory, which gives a sense of acceleration,” said Cassou. “We now feel climate change that is emerging above usual weather.”