By: Ozren Podnar |
Global warming will lead to devastating storms, unbearable heat and food shortages |
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Global warming is not an abstract fact about which we often hear in the media.
It will have a direct impact on our lives and health.
Experts warn that rising temperatures create conditions for severe storms and large hail.
Participants of the Seventh European Conference on storms in Helsinki announced that due to global warming storms are expected to be stronger, followed by thunderstorms and damaging winds across the planet.
Thunderstorms could lead to numerous tornadoes and large hail, according to The Daily Green.
While tornadoes are mostly a problem in the United States, large chunks of ice often cause severe damage to crops in Central and Eastern Europe, India, Bangladesh and elsewhere.
Large hail and lightning strikes are dangerous for the lives of people caught in the storm.
While extreme weather events are not to be underestimated, other effects of climate changes are even more threatening.
Consequences include:
- ice melting
- raising sea levels
- reduced agricultural production
- water shortages in many parts of the world
- great migrations
- the spread of diseases
Record Arctic warming
Not so long ago, the Arctic Ocean was covered with thick multi-year ice.
Even in late summer, more than half of the sea surface was covered with ice.
As the planet warms, the Arctic winter freezing can no longer compensate for summer melting, reports The New Scientist.
As more ice melts, it increases the surface area of liquid water, which absorbs heat as it is darker than the ice.
Due to the melting of ice, there is more moisture in the atmosphere. This moisture retains more heat near the surface of the soil, which accelerates the whole warming process.
Because of these processes, the Arctic is now warming twice as fast as other parts of the planet.
Greenland ice yields
According to instrument on meteorological stations in Greenland, a typical summer day temperature in that region was minus ten degrees C.
Last year, however, the temperature rose above zero and at one point began to melt 97 percent of Greenland's ice.
This led to a catastrophic flood, which destroyed bridges.
Scientists believed 15 years ago that Greenland will preserve most of its ice for centuries.
However, the rapid melting of the local ice means that the global sea level will raise for about a meter by 2010.
Temperature extremes
Huge fluctuations in temperatures are also results of climate changes.
In the summer of 2010 Russia has been hit by a temperature of 40 degrees Celsius. In the past two years the United States and Europe have experienced similar heat.
Winters, however, became cooler and wetter. Astonishing amounts of snow buried the numerous American and European cities.
Experts say that it is all a result of warming. Higher temperatures cause evaporation of water and drought.
Then the accumulated moisture returns to the ground in a form of heavy precipitations.
Fatal heat
Scientists estimate that some of now populated parts of the planet will become deadly hot.
In August 2003, in parts of France, temperatures have reached 40 degrees for seven consecutive days.
So many people died that the government had leased chilled warehouse near Paris for the disposal of the body before burial.
The study from 2008 found that 70,000 people died in France during that heat wave. The victims were mostly elderly or sick people.
Heat has another, hidden effects, says the New Scientist.
Productivity of people working in hot places decreases by two percent whenever the temperature rises by one degree Celsius.
When it gets too hot, people suffer from exhaustion, heat stroke and kidney failure.
Compromised food production
Due to extreme weather conditions, food production declines and food prices rise.
Last year in the US yields severely failed because of a record drought. In England, the crops were also reduced, but due to a heavy rain.
The scientists did not anticipate this development, because even in 2007 they claimed that yields will grow due to temperature increase, at least in temperate regions.
If stopped emitting CO2 into the atmosphere now, it seems we would be able to prevent further heating of our planet.
Unfortunately, CO2 emissions fell only slightly in 2008, and then continued to grow.
This led Professor Paul Valdes from Bristol University in the UK to send an alarming message:
"CO2 emissions are not reducing, and that is the scariest threat to our future."
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