Scottish summers set to keep getting warmer, study shows
Cold, wet summers could become a thing of the past in Scotland, according to a new study. Researchers from Edinburgh and Oxford universities and the Met Office, the UK’s official weather service, say that summer temperatures of 30°C could become common in the future because of climate change.
Climate change is long-term changes in the world’s weather patterns, including rising temperatures. Human activities such as burning fossil fuels (coal, oil and natural gas), farming and cutting down forests are a major cause of changing weather patterns around the world. When fossil fuels are burned, for example, they release gases such as carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. These gases are called greenhouse gases. Their emissions contribute to climate change.
People experienced hot and dry conditions during a heatwave in the summer of 2018. The team found that climate change would lead to those conditions becoming more frequent in Scotland. Lead researcher Professor Simon Tett, from Edinburgh University, said that carbon dioxide emissions had to be cut around the world in order to prevent this from getting worse.
The study also looked into the direct effects of the unusual weather in 2018 on people, animals and landscapes in Scotland. Among these were a thirty per cent increase in demand for water, an increase in harmful insects such as flies and mosquitoes, and a fall in the amount of peas, potatoes, carrots and onions that were harvested. The populations of some types of birds declined because of a lack of water. There was also disturbance to trains because rails were bent by the heat.
Tett explained, “Despite its cool climate, Scotland must start to prepare now for the impact of high temperature extremes. The bottom line is that heatwaves have become more likely because of the climate change caused by human activities.”
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Blowing a Few Tops
Ever stopped to consider the upside of volcanic eruptions? It’s not all deaths, destruction and hot lava---scientists have a plan to cool the planet by simulating one. It would probably work, but it could have devastating consequence, and there is nothing to stop any country or company from deploying the technology.
Solar geo-engineering(气候工程) involves simulating an erupting volcano by spraying aerosols (气溶胶) into the atmosphere. When they combine with oxygen, droplets of acid form. These droplets reflect sunlight away from Earth, cooling the planet. All good in theory, but the consequences are largely unknown and a few could be disastrous. In a study recently published, researchers led by Anthony Jones, a climate scientist from the University of Exeter, found that using this technology in the Northern hemisphere could reduce the number of tropical cyclones hitting the U.S. and Caribbean. But there’s a worrying problem: more cyclones in the Southern hemisphere and a drought across the Sahel region of Africa. That’s because the entries climate system is linked--- disrupting one region will invariably affect another. How would a nation react if another was causing its weather to get much worse? Would that be an act of war?
There is, however, a case for using solar geo-engineering on a global case. Jones says it could be used to “take the edge of “the temperature increases scientists are predicting. It could be used while the world searches for more effective strategies.
The study also highlights a far bigger problem with solar geo-engineering: its complete lack of regulation. “There is nothing that could stop one country just doing it,” Jones says. “It’s deeply disturbing that we have this technology that could have such a massive influence in the climate, yet there’s just no regulation to stop countries or even organizations from doing it.”
Jones cautions that there is much about the climate system we do not understand, as well as more work that will need to be done before solar geo-engineering is deemed safe—or too dangerous to even discuss.
Until 2017, the Emperor penguin was listed as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, but as of 2018, they are listed as Near-Threatened because they are predicted to suffer a moderately rapid population decline over the next three generations owing to the effects of climate change. The number one threat to their survival is global warming. Here’s how it has affected Emperor penguins and what we should do.
A decrease in the amount of sea ice formation, which is caused by climate change, impacts the future of the Emperor penguin. Many Emperor penguins breed on ice shelves that only form during the Antarctic winter. There have been times in recent years when the ice shelves have melted back faster or sooner than usual. Many of the chicks haven’t completely fledged (长出飞羽) into their waterproof feathers by the time the ice melts back to their habitats, and they are forced into the cold ocean waters, where they die of cold exposure or drowning.
One thing that less sea ice definitely affects is food for the penguins. One of their food sources is krill (磷虾), and the sea-ice shelves serve as a nursery for the krill. The newly-born krill feed on the algae (水藻) that grow on the underside of the sea ice. When there is less sea ice, there is less algae for the krill to feed on, and consequently less krill is produced.
Measures should be taken to protect these animals. People can donate to organizations that are working to protect Emperor penguins and other penguin species, and our oceans in general. Reducing your impact on the environment, in particular, is something you can do—you can make these tiny changes to lower your carbon footprint every day. You can also be mindful about reducing seafood consumption and eating sustainably caught seafood, as overfishing is the second greatest threat to nearly every penguin species today. Also, avoid using supplements and other products that contain krill or krill oil.
