Damn, shit is getting very real... This excellent idea is just another thing on the list of, extraordinary measures, moments of usual candor, emotions slipping through, and so on that I've seen from a trusted voices showing just how far off the map we are. Hold on to each other tight everyone.
This is perfect. All the work the federal government does in presenting an unbiased view of the world is going to be corrupted by the Trump admin for all sorts of fascist purposes, so HEATED doing what it can is vital for accountability.
On Tuesday, February 4, 2025, James Hansen released his new paper by Zoom call, using the UN’s broadcasting system SDSN. The paper – “Global Warming Has Accelerated: Are the United Nations and the Public Well-Informed?” – is the product of Hansen and 17 co-authors. Some key points to understand:
• the 1.5C target has already been surpassed
• with temperature increasing at an accelerated pace since 2010 of 0.36 C per decade (double the rate of rise from 1970 to 2010) we will gain an additional 0.5 in less than 15 years (15 year rise will be 0.36 x 1.5 equals 0.54 C) which will bring us above 2 C by 2040 at the latest
• climate sensitivity is 4.5 C for a doubling of CO2, much higher than the IPCC value of 3 C
• AMOC will likely collapse before 2050 due to fresh water hosing in the North Atlantic at much higher rates (double) than the value used in Hansen's previous paper
• last time AMOC shut down, global sea level rise went up several meters. Clearly, with an AMOC shutdown cooling the Arctic more heat builds up in the Southern Hemisphere and equatorial regions, so Antarctica melt rate increases rapidly and dominates the reduced melt rate from Greenland glaciers.
The arrival of killer whales in the Arctic is more than just an interesting ecological shift — it has the potential to disrupt an already fragile marine ecosystem. These apex predators are now able to hunt Arctic whales like belugas, narwhals, and bowhead whales, which were previously protected by sea ice. "The arctic whales are just chubby, slow, and delicious," said evolutionary geneticist Colin Garroway, underscoring how vulnerable these prey species are to orcas, per Mongabay. While there are still hundreds of thousands of Arctic whales compared to a few hundred killer whales, the long-term impacts of this shift remain uncertain. Beyond the ecological consequences, this change is also a concern for Indigenous communities who rely on Arctic whales for food, culture, and economy. The continued presence of killer whales could impact sustainable hunting traditions that have existed for generations. Historically, thick ice sheets blocked the whales from venturing into these frigid waters, but as rising temperatures melt the ice, new pathways have opened up.
Damn, shit is getting very real... This excellent idea is just another thing on the list of, extraordinary measures, moments of usual candor, emotions slipping through, and so on that I've seen from a trusted voices showing just how far off the map we are. Hold on to each other tight everyone.
This is perfect. All the work the federal government does in presenting an unbiased view of the world is going to be corrupted by the Trump admin for all sorts of fascist purposes, so HEATED doing what it can is vital for accountability.
Great idea - let's go!
On Tuesday, February 4, 2025, James Hansen released his new paper by Zoom call, using the UN’s broadcasting system SDSN. The paper – “Global Warming Has Accelerated: Are the United Nations and the Public Well-Informed?” – is the product of Hansen and 17 co-authors. Some key points to understand:
• the 1.5C target has already been surpassed
• with temperature increasing at an accelerated pace since 2010 of 0.36 C per decade (double the rate of rise from 1970 to 2010) we will gain an additional 0.5 in less than 15 years (15 year rise will be 0.36 x 1.5 equals 0.54 C) which will bring us above 2 C by 2040 at the latest
• climate sensitivity is 4.5 C for a doubling of CO2, much higher than the IPCC value of 3 C
• AMOC will likely collapse before 2050 due to fresh water hosing in the North Atlantic at much higher rates (double) than the value used in Hansen's previous paper
• last time AMOC shut down, global sea level rise went up several meters. Clearly, with an AMOC shutdown cooling the Arctic more heat builds up in the Southern Hemisphere and equatorial regions, so Antarctica melt rate increases rapidly and dominates the reduced melt rate from Greenland glaciers.
The Zoom call is available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6wOjk2OCZQ&t=0s. VIDEO 1:04:17
The paper is available here: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00139157.2025.2434494 (pdf version: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/00139157.2025.2434494?needAccess=true)
Two Paul Beckwith videos, analyzing the call, the paper, and especially the charts / graphs, are available here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZplU7bJebRQ&t=74s VIDEO 40:08
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CA8CmLLugP0 VIDEO 46:54
The Guardian article – “Climate change target of 2C is ‘dead’, says renowned climate scientist” – is available here: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/feb/04/climate-change-target-of-2c-is-dead-says-renowned-climate-scientist.
Orcas in the Arctic:
The arrival of killer whales in the Arctic is more than just an interesting ecological shift — it has the potential to disrupt an already fragile marine ecosystem. These apex predators are now able to hunt Arctic whales like belugas, narwhals, and bowhead whales, which were previously protected by sea ice. "The arctic whales are just chubby, slow, and delicious," said evolutionary geneticist Colin Garroway, underscoring how vulnerable these prey species are to orcas, per Mongabay. While there are still hundreds of thousands of Arctic whales compared to a few hundred killer whales, the long-term impacts of this shift remain uncertain. Beyond the ecological consequences, this change is also a concern for Indigenous communities who rely on Arctic whales for food, culture, and economy. The continued presence of killer whales could impact sustainable hunting traditions that have existed for generations. Historically, thick ice sheets blocked the whales from venturing into these frigid waters, but as rising temperatures melt the ice, new pathways have opened up.
https://www.thecooldown.com/outdoors/killer-whales-arctic-population-orcas/