Global climate change has had visible impacts on the planet’s ecosystem. Glacier retreats, shrinking glaciers, shrinking plant and animal populations have all changed, and species are shifting and flowering earlier. Predicted effects in the past would have resulted in global warming: rapid melting of land ice, increased water pollution and rising sea levels. These changes are taking place even as we speak.
One of the first changes is the melt-down of the ice sheets in the Arctic. As a result, water levels in some parts of the ocean are rising, while they are decreasing in other places. This is a problem for the eco-system, but there are additional impacts from climate change. For example, floods and drought have started to take more lives in Africa and Asia and the impact on wildlife is severe: more animals are being killed for food, and rising temperatures have caused wild diseases to spread.
Meanwhile, melting ice sheets contribute to climate change by releasing large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. The two feedbacks from changing temperatures and changing carbon dioxide concentrations are making the problem much worse than it had been previously thought possible. While it seems likely that carbon dioxide is a leading cause of climate change, not all the carbon dioxide released by human activity is taken up by the oceans and rivers. In fact, the amount of carbon dioxide released from factories is adding to the problem.
Flooding is also becoming more frequent and more intense in many areas. Increased precipitation, melting ice sheets and changing water supplies are all affecting water levels. Many areas are experiencing declines in their water supplies, which could lead to rising levels. Increased flooding is one of the most serious climate change impacts.
Extreme weather conditions are becoming more common, with longer and stronger tropical storms, heat waves and floods. Rapid climate change is affecting the hydrology in some areas, which can lead to rise in flood risks. Drought, which is the result of increasing temperatures and decreasing precipitation, is drying the Mediterranean and affecting the Central America regions. The West African countries are suffering from a serious lack of rainfall as the warming trend continues. Rapid changes in the jet stream, resulting in more extreme weather patterns over the next few decades will increase flood risk.
Another effect of climate change is on global temperatures. Global warming has led to an increase in air temperatures, with a corresponding increase in global temperatures. These changes are currently being felt in arctic areas, where the melt rate of snow is fast outpacing the rate of melting ice. Rapid climate change is likely to cause further melting of ice, which will raise global temperatures even more.
Changes in natural climate are also changing the dynamics of ecosystems. One example is the shift in the distribution of pollen between seasons in spring and summer. Another example is the rapid spreading of wildfire across the world, which is unusual in recent times. In these cases, the effects of climate change have been felt in the form of visible changes in ecosystems, such as the changing of certain species of birds and insects in certain locations or in the amount of vegetation growth.
It is likely that in the coming years, human activities will be increasing the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere. There is a possibility that the concentration of Co2 will rise above the concentration of atmospheric water vapor. If this occurs, it is likely that the Earth’s climate will be greatly affected. Evidence of recent climate change can be seen in the changes of the earth’s ice and albedo.