Earth May Be Warming Even Faster Than Expected [Slide Show]

Three feedback loops are amplifying how rapidly the planet is heating up

WILDFIRES: Warmer temperatures or less snow can lead to large, dry areas of forests, extending the region and number of months during which wildfires can rage, such as the High Park Fire that burned just west of Fort Collins, Colo., in June 2012. U.S. Department of Agriculture
PINE BEETLE DEVASTATION: Warmer temperatures in the western U.S. and Canada have helped the mountain pine beetle thrive, killing hundreds of thousands of hectares of trees, such as these (brown) on Mount Fraser in British Columbia, Canada. Flickr/Themightyquill
MELTWATER RUNOFF: As ice melts in polar regions, such as this spot in the Arctic Ocean, and runs into the sea it can warm the seawater, leading to more melting. NASA
GLACIER BREAKDOWN: Landlocked glaciers such as Perito Moreno in Argentina and oceanside glaciers in the Arctic and Antarctic are retreating or breaking apart, and therefore reflect less sunlight back to space, which allows air to warm and degrade glaciers further. Flickr/pclvv
Advertisement
PERMAFROST THAW: Small lakes (green dots) form around Liverpool Bay in Canada east of Alaska as permafrost melts and releases carbon dioxide. As a lake grows, its relatively warm water melts even more permafrost. NASA

Newsletter