2. Climate change is happening now:
• Temperatures are rising.
• Rainfall patterns are shifting.
• Glaciers and snow are melting.
• The global mean sea level is rising.
3. We expect that these changes will continue,
and that extreme weather events resulting
in hazards such as floods and droughts will
become more frequent and intense. Impacts
and vulnerabilities for nature, the economy
and our health differ across regions,
territories and economic sectors.
5. Sea level rise
Global sea level rose about 17 centimeters in
the last century. The rate in the last decade,
however, is nearly double that of the last
century.
6. Global temperature rise
All three major global surface temperature
reconstructions show that Earth has warmed
since 1880.
8. Declining Arctic sea ice
Both the extent and thickness of Arctic sea ice
has declined rapidly over the last several
decades.
9. Glacial retreat
Glaciers are retreating almost everywhere
around the world (including in the Alps,
Himalayas, Andes, Rockies, Alaska and
Africa).
10. Climate change is already beginning to transform
life on Earth. Around the globe, seasons are
shifting, temperatures are climbing and sea
levels are rising. And meanwhile, our planet
must still supply us (and all living things) with
air, water, food and safe places to live. If we
don't act now, climate change will rapidly alter
the lands and waters we all depend upon for
survival, leaving our children and grandchildren
with a very different world.