Detecting human fingerprints on complex events like droughts is not straightforward. AAP Image/Dan Peled

The science of drought is complex but the message on climate change is clear

Drought has both natural and human causes, but deep cuts in our greenhouse gas emissions are urgently needed, regardless.
Gelombang panas Eropa adalah bagian dari pola pemanasan global yang pesat. EPA/ABEL ALONSO

Riset tunjukkan bahwa Bumi memanas dengan lebih cepat

Gambaran paling jelas dari temperatur global selama 2.000 tahun terakhir telah menunjukkan bahwa pemanasan yang terjadi pada 50 tahun belakangan ini belum pernah terjadi sebelumnya dalam dua milenia.
Sunburnt Victorian fields are set to become more common under climate change. Fir0002/Flagstaffotos/Wikimedia Commons

2°C of global warming would put pressure on Melbourne’s water supply

Hitting the Paris targets will go a long way to securing Melbourne’s water supply against future pressure.
European heatwaves are part of a pattern of rapid global warming. EPA/ABEL ALONSO

2,000 years of records show it’s getting hotter, faster

The clearest picture yet of the past 2,000 years of global temperatures has shown warming in the last 50-odd years is unprecedented in the last two millennia.
The coral reef of Rarotonga helped scientists create a better climate history. Corey Huber

El Niño has rapidly become stronger and stranger, according to coral records

El Niño events can affect millions of people around the world, causing drought in Australia and floods in the Americas.
Firefighters and volunteers battle a blaze near Loutraki in southern Greece. Vassilis Psomas/EPA

It’s a savage summer in the Northern Hemisphere – and climate change is slashing the odds of more heatwaves

From Greece, to the UK, to Japan and even Sweden, a slew of places in the Northern Hemisphere are suffering extreme heat. And the chances of extreme heat records tumbling are growing all the time.
Places such as Berri were affected by Millennium Drought, caused by low cool-season rain. New materials and techniques are now being used to observe drought causes and water patterns in Australia’s history to help the future. Gary Sauer-Thompson/flickr

Recent Australian droughts may be the worst in 800 years

Australia has always suffered heat and flood, but a detailed seasonal rainfall reconstruction of the last 800 years shows the extremes are intensifying.
Ice cores are a window into the past hundreds of thousands of years. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center/Ludovic Brucker

The three‑minute story of 800,000 years of climate change with a sting in the tail

The current rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide levels is unprecedented in the past 800,000 years. As our video explains, ice cores track human changes to the atmosphere that are far beyond natural.
A pre-industrial climate benchmark generally indicates before the Industrial Revolution – but that still leaves a very wide field. REUTERS/Jason Reed

What is a pre‑industrial climate and why does it matter?

The Paris climate agreement aims to keep global warming to within 2°C above ‘pre-industrial levels’. But what does that mean, exactly?
Nowhere to hide? With 2°C of global warming, the stifling heat of January 2013 would be the norm for Australia. AAP Image/Dean Lewins

Why 2°C of global warming is much worse for Australia than 1.5°C

Global warming of 2°C, the higher of the two Paris targets, would see current record-breaking temperatures become the norm in the future, potentially bringing heatwaves to both land and sea.
Firefighters fight forest fire in Indonesia, triggered in part by El Nino. EPA/RONY MUHARRMAN

Meet El Niño’s cranky uncle that could send global warming into hyperdrive

We’re due to cop a hiding from the Pacific Ocean, but we don’t know when.

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