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The Climate Change Thread

Those small changes matter and aren’t easy. The challenge won’t be with the developed world but rather with the striving of the other 7B who want our quality of life. I also think we’re in the midst of a global rethinking of these policies as Europe has entirely nuked their industrial economy and you can see how it has impacted global emissions. You’re going to have to convince voters who once had good jobs at Volkswagen that their sacrifice is making a difference.

IMG_6335.png
 
So far, it seems like the size and strength, and rapid intensification, of storms is the most notable result of global warming, IMO. Hurricane Mellisa has been amazing. I always watch the Atlantic hurricanes, since they sometimes slam my region. I think Mellisa was the strongest to make landfall in the Atlantic. Just insane rapid intensification. And rain! That’s warm water doing that, and that warm water is man produced warming.

apnews.com

Melissa is a beast among a string of monster Atlantic storms. Scientists explain

Hurricane Melissa struck Jamaica with record-tying 185 mph winds, and its strength defied typical weakening factors.
apnews.com apnews.com

Melissa somehow shook off at least three different meteorological conditions that normally weaken major hurricanes and was still gaining power as it hit, scientists said, a bit amazed.

And while more storms these days are undergoing rapid intensification — gaining 35 mph in wind speed over 24 hours — Melissa did a lot more than that. It achieved what’s called extreme rapid intensification — gaining at least 58 mph over 24 hours. In fact, Melissa turbocharged by about 70 mph during a 24-hour period last week, and had an unusual second round of rapid intensification that spun it up to 175 mph, scientists said.

“It’s been a remarkable, just a beast of a storm,” Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach said.

Warm water fuels growth​

Melissa rapidly intensified during five six-hour periods as it hit the extreme rapid intensification level, McNoldy said. And then it jumped another 35 mph and “that’s extraordinary,” he said.

For meteorologists following it “just your stomach would sink as you’d see these updates coming in,” Woods Placky said.

“We were sitting at work on Monday morning with our team and you just saw the numbers just start jumping again, 175. And then again this morning (Tuesday), 185,” Woods Placky said.


“It’s an explosion,” she said.

(THIS):
One key factor is warm water. McNoldy said some parts of the ocean under Melissa were 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than the long-term average for this time of year.

Climate Central, using scientifically accepted techniques of comparing what’s happening now to a fictional world with no human-caused climate change, estimated the role of global warming in Melissa. It said the water was 500 to 700 times more likely to be warmer than normal because of climate change.

A rapid Associated Press analysis of Category 5 hurricanes that brewed, not just hit, in the Atlantic over the past 125 years showed a large recent increase in those top-of-the-scale storms. There have been 13 Category 5 storms from 2016 to 2025, including three this year. Until last year, no other 10-year period even reached double digits. About 29% of the Category 5 hurricanes in the past 125 years have happened since 2016.
 
www.space.com

Is Earth 'on the brink'? 2024 was likely our planet’s hottest year in 125,000 years

Is Earth 'on the brink'? 2024 was likely our planet’s hottest year in 125,000 years
www.space.com www.space.com

2024 may have been Earth's hottest year in at least 125,000 years, according to a grim climate report published Wednesday (Oct. 29) that describes our world as "on the brink" and warns its "vital signs are flashing red," with nearly two-thirds showing record highs.

Last year had already been declared the hottest on record (those records dating back to the late 1800s), following 2023 — which used to be considered the warmest year in human history. The year 2024 also capped a decade of record-breaking heat fueled by human-caused climate change, continuing a trend that began in 2015. Now, the new report, led by researchers at Oregon State University, suggests the year was also likely hotter than the peak of the last interglacial period, roughly 125,000 years ago, when natural shifts in Earth's orbit and tilt made the planet warmer and sea levels several meters higher. That result is based on previously published climate studies.

The study concludes that 22 of 34 measurable indicators of Earth's health, including greenhouse gas levels, ocean heat, sea ice and deforestation, have reached record extremes. The authors warn that these trends suggest humanity is in a "state of ecological overshoot," consuming the planet's resources faster than they can be replenished.
————————————————————

The state of the planet report:


We are hurtling toward climate chaos. The planet's vital signs are flashing red. The consequences of human-driven alterations of the climate are no longer future threats but are here now. This unfolding emergency stems from failed foresight, political inaction, unsustainable economic systems, and misinformation. Almost every corner of the biosphere is reeling from intensifying heat, storms, floods, droughts, or fires. The window to prevent the worst outcomes is rapidly closing. In early 2025, the World Meteorological Organization reported that 2024 was the hottest year on record (WMO 2025a). This was likely hotter than the peak of the last interglacial, roughly 125,000 years ago (Gulev et al. 2021, Kaufman and McKay 2022). Rising levels of greenhouse gases remain the driving force behind this escalation. These recent developments emphasize the extreme insufficiency of global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mark the beginning of a grim new chapter for life on Earth.

In this report, we seek to speak candidly to fellow scientists, policymakers, and humanity at large. Given our roles in research and higher education, we share an ethical responsibility to sound the alarm about escalating global risks and to take collective action in confronting them with clarity and resolve. We show evidence of accelerated warming and document changes in Earth's vital signs. These indicators build on the framework introduced by Ripple and colleagues (2020), who issued a declaration of a climate emergency that has garnered support from approximately 15,800 scientist signatories worldwide. We also examine recent extreme weather disasters and discuss physical and social risks. The final sections of the report include suggested climate mitigation strategies and the broader societal transformations needed to secure a livable future. A summary of key findings is given in box 1.

Key Highlights. (See main text for data sources.)
  • •
    The year 2024 set a new mean global surface temperature record, signaling an escalation of climate upheaval.
  • •
    Currently, 22 of 34 planetary vital signs are at record levels.
  • •
    Warming may be accelerating, likely driven by reduced aerosol cooling, strong cloud feedbacks, and a darkening planet.
  • •
    The human enterprise is driving ecological overshoot. Population, livestock, meat consumption, and gross domestic product are all at record highs, with an additional approximately 1.3 million humans and 0.5 million ruminants added weekly.
  • •
    In 2024, fossil fuel energy consumption hit a record high, with coal, oil, and gas all at peak levels. Combined solar and wind consumption also set a new record but was 31 times lower than fossil fuel energy consumption.
  • •
    So far, in 2025, atmospheric carbon dioxide is at a record level, likely worsened by a sudden drop in land carbon uptake partly due to El Niño and intense forest fires.
  • •
    Global fire-related tree cover loss reached an all-time high, with fires in tropical primary forest up 370% over 2023, fueling rising emissions and biodiversity loss.
  • •
    Ocean heat content reached a record high, contributing to the largest coral bleaching event ever recorded, affecting 84% of reef area.
  • •
    So far, in 2025, Greenland and Antarctic ice mass are at record lows. The Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets may be passing tipping points, potentially committing the planet to meters of sea-level rise.
  • •
    Deadly and costly disasters surged, with Texas flooding killing at least 135 people, the California wildfires alone exceeding US$250 billion in damages, and climate-linked disasters since 2000 globally reaching more than US$18 trillion.
  • •
    Climate change is endangering thousands of wild animal species; more than 3500 species are now at risk and there is new evidence of climate-related animal population collapses.
  • •
    The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation is weakening, threatening major climate disruptions.
  • •
    Climate change is already affecting water quality and availability, undermining agricultural productivity, sustainable water management, and increasing the risk of water-related conflict.
  • •
    A dangerous hothouse Earth trajectory may now be more likely due to accelerated warming, self-reinforcing feedbacks, and tipping points.
  • •
    Climate change mitigation strategies are available, cost effective, and urgently needed. From forest protection and renewables to plant-rich diets, we can still limit warming if we act boldly and quickly.
  • •
    Social tipping points can drive rapid change. Even small, sustained nonviolent movements can shift public norms and policy, highlighting a vital path forward amid political gridlock and ecological crisis.
  • •
    There is a need for systems change that links individual technical approaches with broader societal transformation, governance, policies, and social movements.
 
Last edited:
Red said:
www.space.com

Is Earth 'on the brink'? 2024 was likely our planet’s hottest year in 125,000 years

Is Earth 'on the brink'? 2024 was likely our planet’s hottest year in 125,000 years
www.space.com www.space.com

2024 may have been Earth's hottest year in at least 125,000 years, according to a grim climate report published Wednesday (Oct. 29) that describes our world as "on the brink" and warns its "vital signs are flashing red," with nearly two-thirds showing record highs.

Last year had already been declared the hottest on record (those records dating back to the late 1800s), following 2023 — which used to be considered the warmest year in human history. The year 2024 also capped a decade of record-breaking heat fueled by human-caused climate change, continuing a trend that began in 2015. Now, the new report, led by researchers at Oregon State University, suggests the year was also likely hotter than the peak of the last interglacial period, roughly 125,000 years ago, when natural shifts in Earth's orbit and tilt made the planet warmer and sea levels several meters higher. That result is based on previously published climate studies.

The study concludes that 22 of 34 measurable indicators of Earth's health, including greenhouse gas levels, ocean heat, sea ice and deforestation, have reached record extremes. The authors warn that these trends suggest humanity is in a "state of ecological overshoot," consuming the planet's resources faster than they can be replenished.
————————————————————

The state of the planet report:


We are hurtling toward climate chaos. The planet's vital signs are flashing red. The consequences of human-driven alterations of the climate are no longer future threats but are here now. This unfolding emergency stems from failed foresight, political inaction, unsustainable economic systems, and misinformation. Almost every corner of the biosphere is reeling from intensifying heat, storms, floods, droughts, or fires. The window to prevent the worst outcomes is rapidly closing. In early 2025, the World Meteorological Organization reported that 2024 was the hottest year on record (WMO 2025a). This was likely hotter than the peak of the last interglacial, roughly 125,000 years ago (Gulev et al. 2021, Kaufman and McKay 2022). Rising levels of greenhouse gases remain the driving force behind this escalation. These recent developments emphasize the extreme insufficiency of global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mark the beginning of a grim new chapter for life on Earth.

In this report, we seek to speak candidly to fellow scientists, policymakers, and humanity at large. Given our roles in research and higher education, we share an ethical responsibility to sound the alarm about escalating global risks and to take collective action in confronting them with clarity and resolve. We show evidence of accelerated warming and document changes in Earth's vital signs. These indicators build on the framework introduced by Ripple and colleagues (2020), who issued a declaration of a climate emergency that has garnered support from approximately 15,800 scientist signatories worldwide. We also examine recent extreme weather disasters and discuss physical and social risks. The final sections of the report include suggested climate mitigation strategies and the broader societal transformations needed to secure a livable future. A summary of key findings is given in box 1.

Key Highlights. (See main text for data sources.)
  • •
    The year 2024 set a new mean global surface temperature record, signaling an escalation of climate upheaval.
  • •
    Currently, 22 of 34 planetary vital signs are at record levels.
  • •
    Warming may be accelerating, likely driven by reduced aerosol cooling, strong cloud feedbacks, and a darkening planet.
  • •
    The human enterprise is driving ecological overshoot. Population, livestock, meat consumption, and gross domestic product are all at record highs, with an additional approximately 1.3 million humans and 0.5 million ruminants added weekly.
  • •
    In 2024, fossil fuel energy consumption hit a record high, with coal, oil, and gas all at peak levels. Combined solar and wind consumption also set a new record but was 31 times lower than fossil fuel energy consumption.
  • •
    So far, in 2025, atmospheric carbon dioxide is at a record level, likely worsened by a sudden drop in land carbon uptake partly due to El Niño and intense forest fires.
  • •
    Global fire-related tree cover loss reached an all-time high, with fires in tropical primary forest up 370% over 2023, fueling rising emissions and biodiversity loss.
  • •
    Ocean heat content reached a record high, contributing to the largest coral bleaching event ever recorded, affecting 84% of reef area.
  • •
    So far, in 2025, Greenland and Antarctic ice mass are at record lows. The Greenland and West Antarctic ice sheets may be passing tipping points, potentially committing the planet to meters of sea-level rise.
  • •
    Deadly and costly disasters surged, with Texas flooding killing at least 135 people, the California wildfires alone exceeding US$250 billion in damages, and climate-linked disasters since 2000 globally reaching more than US$18 trillion.
  • •
    Climate change is endangering thousands of wild animal species; more than 3500 species are now at risk and there is new evidence of climate-related animal population collapses.
  • •
    The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation is weakening, threatening major climate disruptions.
  • •
    Climate change is already affecting water quality and availability, undermining agricultural productivity, sustainable water management, and increasing the risk of water-related conflict.
  • •
    A dangerous hothouse Earth trajectory may now be more likely due to accelerated warming, self-reinforcing feedbacks, and tipping points.
  • •
    Climate change mitigation strategies are available, cost effective, and urgently needed. From forest protection and renewables to plant-rich diets, we can still limit warming if we act boldly and quickly.
  • •
    Social tipping points can drive rapid change. Even small, sustained nonviolent movements can shift public norms and policy, highlighting a vital path forward amid political gridlock and ecological crisis.
  • •
    There is a need for systems change that links individual technical approaches with broader societal transformation, governance, policies, and social movements.
Click to expand...
you all should definitely listen to the billionaires that take private jets everyday all over the world and have 6 mansions and seriously reduce your carbon footprint. You should turn your thermostat off, you should skip showers, and you should not travel or eat meat. The democrat perspective that they hate you and they want you to unalive yourself makes total sense when you think about it from a climate change perspective.
 
@Mongoose: “you all should definitely listen to the billionaires that take private jets everyday all over the world and have 6 mansions and seriously reduce your carbon footprint.”

But those are the very people you support 100%: Remember how you used to whine and cry about our “uniparty”? Well, there you go. Your boys!

The term "Trump oligarchy" is used by critics, political commentators, and some academics to describe the significant concentration of wealth and power within Donald Trump's administration and his close ties to a small group of ultra-wealthy individuals, particularly tech billionaires.

An oligarchy is generally defined as a form of government where a small group of people, typically the very rich, holds most of the power and uses it to make decisions that serve their own interests over those of the public.
Key aspects and arguments associated with the term include:
  • Billionaire Cabinet and Advisers: Trump's administrations have been described as the wealthiest in U.S. history, featuring numerous billionaires in cabinet and advisory roles, such as Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg.
  • Policy Influence: There are concerns that these wealthy individuals, who have made significant political donations, are gaining direct access and influence over government policy in a way that directly benefits their corporations and personal financial interests (e.g., in areas like AI, space exploration, and tax policy).
  • Tax Cuts and Deregulation: The Trump administration's support for policies like the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (which disproportionately benefited the wealthy and large corporations) and broad deregulation efforts are often cited as evidence of governance in favor of an elite few.
  • Conflicts of Interest: Critics point to numerous potential conflicts of interest, where individuals within the administration or close to the President may benefit financially from government decisions or policy shifts.
  • Erosion of Democratic Norms: The visible alignment of extreme wealth and political power is seen by some as a threat to democracy, arguing that the influence of average citizens is marginalized when policy outcomes overwhelmingly favor the rich.
  • Comparison to Gilded Age/Russia: Commentators often draw parallels to America's "Gilded Age" or to modern-day Russia's system, where a "ruling class" of individuals with immense wealth holds sway over government circles.
Proponents of Trump, including some conservative influencers, often counter by arguing that a different kind of "oligarchy" of "intellectual elites" (lawyers, academics, journalists) or a "tech-industrial complex" has been the real problem, and that successful entrepreneurs can "disrupt" this system to benefit the country.
 
www.theguardian.com

America’s super-rich are running down the planet’s safe climate spaces, says Oxfam

Data shows wealthiest 0.1% of the US burn carbon at 4,000 times the rate of the world’s poorest 10%
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com

The US’s super-rich are burning through carbon emissions at 4,000 times the speed of the world’s poorest 10%, according to an analysis provided to the Guardian.

These billionaires and multimillionaires, who comprise the wealthiest 0.1% of the US population, are also running down our planet’s safe climate space at 183 times the rate of the global average.


The data, produced by Oxfam and the Stockholm Environment Instituteahead of the Cop30 climate summit, highlights the chasm between the carbon-guzzling rich, who are most responsible for the climate crisis, and the heat-vulnerable poor, who suffer the worst consequences.

At one end, the wealthiest 0.1% emit an average of 2.2 tonnes of CO2 every day, equivalent to the weight of a rhinoceros or an SUV.

At the other, a citizen of Somalia burns off just 82 grams of CO2 each day, barely the mass of a single tomato or half a cup of rice.

In between, the average for everyone on the planet is 12kg a day, about as heavy as a standard car tyre.

The analysis was provided for the launch of Oxfam’s annual report on carbon inequality, which underscores how lavish lifestyles of superyachts, private jets and vast mansions often combine with investments in polluting industries to create climate-destabilising individual footprints.

The study, which was released on Wednesday, found that 308 of the world’s billionaires had a combined CO2 tally that, if they were a country, would make them the 15th most polluting country in the world.

The great carbon divide has grown over the past 30 years. Since 1990, the share of emissions of the richest 0.1% has increased by 32%, while the share of the poorest 50% has fallen by 3%.

“The climate crisis is an inequality crisis,” said Amitabh Behar, the executive director of Oxfam International. “The very richest individuals in the world are funding and profiting from climate destruction, leaving the global majority to bear the fatal consequences of their unchecked power.”

The inequality creates dangerous feedbacks: the more wealth is accumulated in a few hands, the more responsibility for the climate crisis is concentrated among a small number of powerful individuals, who use their money and influence to deny, delay and distract from emissions reductions…..

……The consequences are deadly. The report calculates that the emissions of the richest 1% are enough to cause an estimated 1.3m heat-related deaths by the end of the century, as well as $44tn of economic damage to low- and lower-middle-income countries by 2050. The suffering is disproportionately high in the global south, which is the part of the world that is least to blame for climate breakdown.
 
Committing crimes against humanity’s future….


The environmental rollbacks came one after the next this week, potentially affecting everything from the survival of rare whales to the health of the Hudson River.

On Monday, the Environmental Protection Agency proposed to strip federal protections from millions of acres of wetlands and streams, narrowing the reach of the Clean Water Act.

On Wednesday, federal wildlife agencies announced changes to the Endangered Species Act that could make it harder to rescue endangered species from the brink of extinction.

And on Thursday, the Interior Department moved to allow new oil and gas drilling across nearly 1.3 billion acres of U.S. coastal waters, including a remote region in the high Arctic where drilling has never before taken place.

If the Trump administration’s proposals are finalized and upheld in court, they could reshape U.S. environmental policy for years to come, environmental lawyers and activists said.

“This was the week from hell for environmental policy in the United States,” said Pat Parenteau, a professor emeritus and senior fellow for climate policy at Vermont Law and Graduate School. “Unless stopped by the courts, each of these proposed rollbacks will do irreparable harm to the nation’s water quality, endangered species and marine ecosystems.”

The quick pace of these proposals was notable, even for an administration that has enacted Mr. Trump’s agenda at breakneck speed.
While the administration was working in Washington to dismantle environmental protections, 3,300 miles to the south, negotiators from nearly 200 nations were trying to improve the planet’s health at the United Nations climate summit in Brazil.

A White House official, who declined to be identified, said the timing was unrelated to the U.N. climate summit, which the Trump administration boycotted this year. It was the first time since the annual summits began 30 years ago that the United States was not present.

“The Trump administration unveiled many historic announcements this week to further President Trump’s American energy dominance agenda,” Taylor Rogers, a White House spokeswoman, said in an email. “President Trump serves the American people, not radical climate activists who have fallen victim to the biggest scam of the century.”

A range of industries supported the changes, including groups representing farmers, oil drillers, chemical manufacturers, home builders and real estate developers.

“The developments this week were definitely major steps toward the administration’s goal of achieving and restoring American energy dominance and manufacturing dominance as well,” said Chris Phalen, vice president of domestic policy at the National Association of Manufacturers, a trade group. “We’re definitely very pleased with what came out.”

The E.P.A. kicked off the wave of deregulation on Monday, when it proposed to significantly scale back the Clean Water Act, which Congress passed in 1972 to protect all “waters of the United States” from pollution or destruction.

The agency said it would more narrowly define “waters of the United States” to exclude many wetlands and streams across the country. The changes could strip federal protections from up to 55 million acres of wetlands, or about 85 percent of all wetlands nationwide, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group.
 
www.a16z.news

Gas-Fired Intelligence

Everything you need to know about the resource powering AI
www.a16z.news www.a16z.news

Silicon Valley VC talking about natural gas (not normal). Demand about to go through the roof due to AI. The new fear is LNG may be overcapitalized as exports drop due to new domestic demand.
 
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Reactions: Red
rippimpc said:
www.a16z.news

Gas-Fired Intelligence

Everything you need to know about the resource powering AI
www.a16z.news www.a16z.news

Silicon Valley VC talking about natural gas (not normal). Demand about to go through the roof due to AI. The new fear is LNG may be overcapitalized as exports drop due to new domestic demand.
Click to expand...
AI increases the demand for LNG? They using LNG to power data centers or whatever it is you call an AI farm?
 
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