Science

This interactive map shows some of the possible impacts of a global temperature rise of 4 degrees Celsius.

It underlines why the UK Government and other countries believe we must keep global warming to no more than 2 degrees Celsius – a global target agreed at international climate negotiations. Beyond that, the impacts will be increasingly disruptive to global prosperity and security.

• Watch videos from the scientists
• To view this content you will need to install Google Earth  

The Google Earth Layers feature:
• Video entries from the scientists behind the climate research, led by the Met Office Hadley Centre.
• Further explanation on the science and links to the research on:

• forest fire:
  
• crops;
  
• water availability;
  
• sea level rise;
  
• marine;
  
• drought;
  
• permafrost;
  
• tropical cyclones;
  
• extreme temperature;
  
• health
  

• Examples of work the FCO & British Council are undertaking to persuade people of the risks of climate change and the need for a transition to a low carbon economy.

To note:
• The validity of the science is only supported by the Met Office Hadley Centre when viewing Google Earth on this page or via the available download link.
• The maps featured on our websites have been designed for display purposes only and should not be used for determining the precise location of places or features. The maps should not be considered an authority on the delimination of international boundaries or the spelling of place and feature names. The maps used on this website, including maps from second-party sites such as Google, are not to be taken as necessarily representing the views of the UK government on boundaries or political status.

What is climate change?

Climate Change Facts

• The overwhelming majority of scientists agree that global warming is due to rising concentrations of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere caused by human activities.
• The global atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide has increased from a pre-industrial value of about 280 parts per million (ppm) to 379 ppm in 2005.
• The atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide in 2005 exceeds by far the natural range over the last 650,000 years 
• Average global temperatures are likely to rise between 1.1°C and 6.4°C this century
• The Earth’s surface has warmed by about 0.75°C during the 20th century

Source: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 

The term ‘climate change’ usually refers to man-made changes that have occurred since the early 1900s.

Climate is the average weather experienced over a long period. This includes temperature, wind and rainfall patterns. The Earth’s climate is not fixed, and in the past has changed many times in response to a variety of natural causes. However, the Earth’s surface has warmed unusually fast over the last century - about 0.75°C, with more than half that taking place over the last three decades. 

The 2007 Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) leaves no doubt that human activity is the main cause of the warming observed over the last 100 years, particularly over the last 50 years.

The main human influence on global climate is the emission of so called greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane and nitrous oxide. As these gases build up in the atmosphere, they strengthen what is known as the ‘“greenhouse effect’”. At present, over 30 billion tonnes of CO₂ are emitted globally each year by burning fossil fuels, and another 7 billion tonnes by changes in land use, mainly deforestation. Atmospheric concentration of CO₂ is now higher than at any time in at least the last 800,000 years.

According to the AR4, average global temperatures are likely to rise between 1.1°C and 6.4°C (with a best estimate of 1.8 to 4°C) above 1990 levels by the end of this century, depending on our future greenhouse gas emissions. This will result in global sea levels rising by at least 26 to 59cm by the end of this century, continued melting of ice caps, glaciers and sea ice, significant changes in rainfall patterns and intensification of tropical storms.

Related links

The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is Australia's national science agency and one of the largest and most diverse research agencies in the world. View CSIRO facts and climate research on their climate pages.

The Australian Academy of Science was founded in 1954 by Australian Fellows of the Royal Society of London. Their recent publication “The Science of Climate Change: Questions and Answers” aims to address confusion created by contradictory information in the public domain. It sets out to explain the current situation in climate science, including where there is consensus in the scientific community and where uncertainties exist.

The Australian Government’s Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) is the premier national weather, climate and water agency. It is the Bureau's responsibility to provide decision makers and the general public with accurate observations and information about our changing climate.

The Australian Government Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency (DCCEE) contains extensive information about climate change, including a useful area on ‘Science – facts and fiction’

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the leading international body for the assessment of climate change. It was established to provide the world with a clear scientific view on the current state of knowledge in climate change and its potential environmental and socio-economic impacts. The IPCC was honoured with the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize.

The UK Met Office is the UK’s national weather service, with a long history of weather forecasting and has been working in the area of climate change for more than two decades.

The UK’s Royal Society is a fellowship of many of the world's most eminent scientists and is the oldest scientific academy in continuous existence. Their recent ‘Guide to the science of climate change’ summarises the current scientific evidence on climate change and its drivers, highlighting the areas where the science is well established, where there is still some debate, and where substantial uncertainties remain.