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1.5 degrees
Keeping the rise in global average temperature below 1.5 degrees Celsius will prevent the worst effects of climate change, scientists said. This is compared to the "pre-industrial" era. The world has already warmed about 1 ° C since then.
2 degrees
The initial goal of limiting the rise in global average temperature. Recent research indicates that 1.5 degrees is a much safer limit.
3 degrees
The current increase in global average temperature is likely to be around 2100 if countries deliver on their promises to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which are at the root of climate change.
4 degrees
A forecast of the likely increase in average temperature by 2100 if no further action is taken. This would result in a significant rise in sea level, with many coastal areas becoming uninhabitable, as well as regular violent heat waves and massive disturbances of agriculture.
Adaptation
An action that helps to cope with the effects of climate change – for example, building houses on stilts to protect against floods, building sea level barriers or growing crops that can survive high temperatures and to drought.
AGW
Means "anthropogenic global warming", which means the increase in temperatures caused by human activity, such as the burning of fossil fuels such as coal and oil. This produces carbon dioxide and other so-called greenhouse gases, which retain heat in the atmosphere and cause global warming. This is in addition to climate change due to natural processes.
Arctic ice
The Arctic Ocean freezes in the winter and much of it thaws in the summer. The thaw in the region has increased by 40% in recent decades. The Arctic region is warming twice as fast as the rest of the planet.
allotment
Attribution is the process by which scientists attempt to explain whether climate change has made a particular weather event, such as a heat wave, more likely.
Mean temperature
The average temperature of the world is calculated using temperature readings from weather stations, satellites, ships and buoys at sea. It is currently at 14.9 ° C.
BECCS
Means "bioenergy with carbon capture and storage". It is the name of a system in which crops are grown (which draws carbon dioxide from the air) and when they are burned to produce electricity, carbon emissions are captured and then stored. Scientists believe that it is an essential way to keep lights on without contributing to global warming, but the technology is in its infancy.
biofuel
A fuel derived from renewable biological sources, including crops such as maize, palm oil and sugar cane, as well as some forms of agricultural waste.
biomass
Biomass is a plant or animal material used to produce energy or as a raw material for other products. The simplest example is cow dung; another is compressed wood pellets, which are now used in some plants.
Carbon
Carbon is a chemical element sometimes described as a constituent element of life on Earth because it is found in most plants and animals. It is also found in fuels such as gasoline, coal and natural gas. When it is burned, it is emitted as a gas called carbon dioxide.
Carbon capture
The trapping and removal of carbon dioxide from the air. The gas can then be reused or injected into deep underground tanks. Carbon sequestration is sometimes called geological sequestration. The technology is in its infancy.
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a gas in the Earth's atmosphere. It occurs naturally and is also a byproduct of human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels. It is the main greenhouse gas produced by human activity.
Carbon footprint
The amount of carbon emitted by an individual or an organism over a given period, or the amount of carbon emitted during the manufacture of a product.
Carbon neutral
A process where there is no net release of carbon dioxide (CO2). For example, growing biomass removes CO2 from the atmosphere, while burning it releases the gas again. The process would be carbon neutral if the amount removed and the quantity released were the same. A company or country can also achieve carbon neutrality through carbon offsetting. The expression "net zero" has the same meaning.
Carbon compensation
Carbon compensation is most often used in relation to air transport. It allows passengers to pay extra to offset the carbon emissions generated by their flight. The money is then invested in environmental projects – such as planting trees or installing solar panels – that reduce carbon dioxide in the same amount of air. Some activists have criticized carbon offsetting as an excuse for continuing to pollute, saying it does not change behavior.
Carbon well
Anything that absorbs more carbon dioxide than it emits. In nature, the main carbon sinks are tropical forests, oceans and soils.
UCC
Means "capture and use of carbon". This involves using technology to extract carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and turn it into products like biofuels and plastics.
Climate change
A pattern of change affecting global or regional climate, measured by average temperature and precipitation, and the frequency of extreme weather events such as heat waves or heavy rains. This variation can be caused by both natural processes and by humans. Global warming is an informal term used to describe climate change caused by humans.
Climate model
Climate models are computer simulations of the behavior of the atmosphere, oceans, lands, plants and ice under various levels of greenhouse gases. This helps scientists to project what the Earth will be as global warming continues. The models do not produce exact predictions, but rather suggest ranges of possible outcomes.
Climate negotiations
Climate negotiations take place every year when the United Nations brings together governments to discuss action to end climate change. The goal is usually a collective agreement to reduce carbon emissions on certain dates. The latest is the 2015 Paris Agreement which sets targets for limiting warming to 2 ° C or 1.5 ° C, if possible. Negotiations are always difficult, as many countries are highly dependent on fossil fuels and worry about the effects of any change on their economy.
CO2
Refers to carbon dioxide, a natural gas that is also a major product of human activity, such as the burning of fossil fuels. Increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere mean that more heat is being retained, which causes global warming.
COP
Stand for "Conference of the Parties". This is the name of the annual United Nations climate change negotiations under what is known as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (see UNFCCC). The goal is to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate.
Copenhagen
A UN climate summit was held in Copenhagen in 2009, which sank into acrimony and ended when countries agreed on a non-binding agreement: the Climate change is "one of the biggest challenges of the hour". This event is widely regarded as one of the least productive since the beginning of the climate negotiations.
Coral bleaching
Coral bleaching refers to the color change of coral reefs when the temperature of the ocean exceeds a certain level, forcing corals to eject the algae with which they normally coexist – this makes them white. The coral can recover if the water cools, but lasting damage can be caused if it stays too hot.
Deforestation
Clearing forests to make way for agriculture, such as soybean crops, to feed cattle or palm oil for consumer products. This releases significant levels of carbon dioxide when burning trees.
deniers
Climate deniers think that climate change only occurs through natural processes and that human activity has no role. They dispute the work of many thousands of experts around the world, whose research has been peer reviewed and published and is based on research spanning more than a century.
Shows
Emissions are any gas release, such as carbon dioxide, which causes global warming, a major cause of climate change. They can be small-scale, in the form of car exhaust gas or cow methane, or on a larger scale, like those of coal-fired power plants and heavy industries.
Extreme weather conditions
In extreme weather, we mean any type of unusual, violent or unusual weather. For example, large heat waves, temperature records, prolonged droughts, periods of cold, and more precipitation than usual. Scientists predict that extreme weather will become more common as the world warms up.
Feedback loop
In a feedback loop, rising temperatures alter the environment in a way that influences the rate of warming. Feedback loops can increase or decrease warming. As the Arctic sea ice melts, the surface changes from a bright, reflective white to a darker blue or green, allowing more of the Sun's rays to be absorbed. So, less ice means more warming and more melting.
Fossil fuels
Fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas were formed when tiny plants and animals flourished in the past, absorbing carbon from the atmosphere, before dying and being ground for years. millions of years. Once burned, they release carbon dioxide.
Geoengineering
Geo-engineering is a technology that could be used to stop or even reverse climate change. Examples range from extracting carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to its underground storage, going through more far-fetched ideas such as deploying large mirrors in the space to deflect the sun's rays. . Some scientists believe that geoengineering can be essential because efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are insufficient. Others warn that the technologies are not proven and could have unintended consequences.
Overall temperature
Usually a reference to the average temperature on the whole planet.
Global warming
The steady rise in the average temperature of the planet over the last decades, which according to experts, is mainly due to the greenhouse gas emissions produced by man. The long-term trend continues to rise, with 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 being the hottest years ever recorded.
Green energy
Green energy, sometimes called renewable energy, is generated from natural and renewable sources. Examples are wind and solar energy as well as biomass, made from compressed wood pellets.
Greenhouse gas
Natural and man-made gases that retain heat in the atmosphere and warm the surface. The Kyoto Protocol limits the emissions of six greenhouse gases: carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, methane, perfluorocarbons, hydrofluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride.
Gulf Stream
The Gulf Stream is a warm ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and runs along the east coast of the United States and crosses the Atlantic Ocean. Scientists think that Europe would be much colder without it. It is feared that the water course will be disrupted if rising temperatures melt more polar ice, resulting in an influx of fresh water.
Hydrocarbon
A hydrocarbon is a substance composed entirely of hydrogen and carbon. The main fossil fuels – coal, oil and gas – are hydrocarbons and, as such, are the main source of emissions related to climate change.
IPCC
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is a scientific body created by the United Nations and the World Meteorological Organization. His role is to review and evaluate the latest scientific research on climate change. Its 2018 report warned that rising global temperatures should be limited to 1.5 ° C to avoid dangerous impacts.
Jetstream
A jet stream is a narrow band of high altitude air that has a great deal of influence on the weather. The warming of the polar regions could disrupt jet currents, making extreme weather events more common, such as summer 2018, a warm year in Europe.
Kyoto Protocol
A series of rules agreed at Kyoto in Japan in 1997, in which 84 developed countries agreed to reduce their combined emissions by 5.2% of their level in 1990.
warm
Term used to describe people who believe that climate change is real and that arises from human activities, but that its effects will not be as serious as predicted by scientists.
Methane
Methane is a gas that retains about 30 times more heat than carbon dioxide. It is produced by human activity from agriculture (cows emit large amounts), as well as by landfills and leaking coal mines. Methane is also naturally emitted by wetlands, termites and forest fires. A major concern is that carbon in frozen soils in Arctic regions will be released as methane as temperatures rise and the ground thaws. This could cause unpredictable global warming.
Mitigation
Action to reduce climate change driven by people. This includes reducing greenhouse gas emissions by switching to renewable energy or capturing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere through planting forests.
Net zero
Term used to describe any process where there is no net release of carbon dioxide (CO2). For example, growing biomass removes CO2 from the atmosphere, while burning it releases the gas again. The process would be void if the amount subscribed and the amount released were identical. A company or country can also reach net zero through carbon offsetting. Net processes or manufactured items are sometimes described as "carbon neutral".
Ocean acidification
The ocean absorbs about a quarter of the carbon dioxide (CO2) produced by humans, helping to reduce the effects of climate change. However, when CO2 dissolves in seawater, carbonic acid is formed. The carbon emissions of the industry over the past 200 years have already begun to alter the chemistry of the world's oceans. If this trend continues, sea creatures will have more difficulty building their shells and skeletal structures, and coral reefs will be killed. This would have serious consequences for the people who depend on them to fish.
Ozone layer
The ozone layer is part of the upper atmosphere of the Earth and contains a large concentration of gas molecules including three oxygen atoms called ozone. Ozone helps to filter harmful sunlight from the sun, which can increase the risk of skin cancer. In the 1980s and 1990s, industrial gases called chlorofluorocarbons (or CFCs) were banned because they damaged the ozone layer. These gases are also powerful greenhouse gases, contributing to global warming.
PPM / ppm
Abbreviation of "parts per million", used to describe the concentration of a gas such as carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) suggested in 2007 that the world should aim to stabilize greenhouse gas levels at 450 ppm CO2 equivalent in order to 39, avoid dangerous climate change. Some scientists and many of the countries most vulnerable to climate change argue that the upper limit of safety is 350 ppm. Modern CO2 levels have exceeded 400 ppm (at the Mauna Loa Lab in Hawaii) in 2013 and continue to increase by about 2 to 3 ppm per year.
preindustrial
Scientists use a baseline to compare the modern increase in temperature on Earth. The baseline often quoted is 1850-1900 and global temperatures have risen by about 1 ° C since then. Of course, the reality is that the industry started much earlier, but the levels of CO2 and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere were noticeable by 1850-1900, so the period is considered as a useful marker.
Renewable energy
Normally refers to energy sources such as biomass (such as wood and biogas), water flow, geothermal (heat of the earth), wind and sun.
Climate change Runaway
Describes how climate change can change suddenly after crossing a "tipping point", making it even more difficult to stop or go back. In 2018, the IPCC stated that global emissions should be reduced by 45% by 2030 and zeroed by 2050 to have a 50% chance of limiting temperature increases to 1.5 ° C. C during this century.
Sea ice
Sea ice is found in the polar regions. It grows in size and thickness in autumn and winter and melts in spring and summer. The amount of sea ice in the Arctic is considered a key indicator of climate trends because the region is warming faster than most other parts of the planet. The smallest extent ever (at the time of the satellites) of the Arctic sea ice was recorded in September 2012. The 3.41 million square kilometers were 44% lower than the 1981-2010 average.
The sea level rises
The rise in sea level should be one of the most dramatic impacts of climate change. In this context, the rise in sea level has two main causes: (1) the expansion of seawater as the oceans warm up; and (2) runoff into the ocean from the waters of melting ice and glaciers. The current level of the seas is about 20 cm higher than in 1900. The sea level is rising by just over 3 mm.
Durability
Sustainability means consuming the planet's resources at a pace that allows them to be replenished. It is sometimes called sustainable development. Types of renewable energy such as solar or wind are described as sustainable, while wood from managed forests where trees are replanted based on the number of trees felled is another example.
Tipping point
Describes how the climate can change suddenly after passing a "tipping point", making it more difficult to stop or go back. Scientists say it is urgent that policymakers halve global emissions of carbon dioxide by 2030, at the risk of causing irreversible changes.
UNFCCC
Represents the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. This is an international treaty, signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, under which countries should work to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere in order to avoid dangerous climate change.
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