[✔️] March 4, 2024 Global Warming News | Antarctic news, Satellite views methane, Tipping Points, Global tipping points, Key recommendations, See bid snow, 2001 Todd Witman

[Richard Pauli]

/*March*//*4, 2024*/

/[ Yes, it was.  Antarctica ice sheets explained - video PBS ]/
*Was This Really a 1 in 700,000,000,000 Year Event?! - Antarctic sea ice 
melting fast*
PBS Terra
  Feb 27, 2024
For decades, Antarctic sea ice trends seemed to defy climate change, 
until…they didn’t. In just two years, Antarctica lost as much sea ice as 
the Arctic lost in three decades. Statistics say that the record low sea 
ice in 2023 was a 1 in 700 BILLION year event, suggesting that the 
models in this case may be broken, or that this anomaly was caused by 
climate change. And a new study asked the question: does this represent 
a STATE CHANGE? And what would that mean for one of our most iconic 
species, the emperor penguin? And what does reduced sea ice mean for 
Thwaites, the Doomsday Glacier? With summer sea ice hitting the 
third-lowest extent in recorded history, it's time to check-in. Watch 
this episode to find out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGkJSEOd1R4



/[ Invisible methane is one of the worst - most of it comes from fossil 
fuel industries ]/
*Tracking an Invisible Climate Menace From 360 Miles Above*
By Malika Khurana and Hiroko Tabuchi March 3, 2024
- -
Methane, a colorless and odorless gas, is the main ingredient in natural 
gas, which is burned in power plants and factories around the world, as 
well as in homes (think: gas stoves). Gas is far cleaner to burn than 
coal, but it has a big problem: It’s notoriously leaky. It seeps from 
oil and gas drill sites. It escapes from pipelines that carry the gas 
where it needs to go. And some operators simply release it into the air 
instead of investing in the infrastructure to capture all of it.

And that’s speeding up climate change.

When methane escapes into the atmosphere, it acts as a heavy blanket in 
the sky, trapping the sun’s heat and warming the world. And in its first 
20 years in the atmosphere, methane captures more than 80 times as much 
heat as does carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas. (Luckily, methane 
doesn’t stay in the atmosphere for as long as carbon dioxide.)

Scientists estimate that human-caused methane emissions are responsible 
for up to 30 percent of the global warming being experienced today.

Figuring out where methane emissions are happening, how big they are and 
who’s responsible has been a challenge. A lot of drill sites are 
unmanned. Some companies don’t invest enough in leak-detection 
technology. Or they don’t welcome inspectors taking measurements.

Enter MethaneSAT....
- -
The good news is that leaks of methane from oil and gas infrastructure 
should be relatively inexpensive to fix. And in theory, capturing that 
methane instead of letting it escape could pay for itself by allowing 
companies to sell more gas. Some companies have already started using 
other satellite data to better track their methane releases.

"We welcome the development, because we share the same aim as E.D.F.," 
said Bjorn Otto Sverdrup, chair of the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative, a 
group of twelve of the world’s biggest oil and gas companies that has 
pledged to reduce methane emissions. "I'd like to wish them the best of 
luck."

More challenging is tackling emissions from landfills or from 
agriculture, specifically livestock, though some scientists are trying 
to do that by tweaking cows’ diets. Methane also seeps from natural 
sources, like flooded wetlands, but the majority of methane emissions 
today come from human activity.

A concerted effort to rein in methane from fossil fuels, agriculture and 
landfills could reduce methane emissions by up to 57 percent by 2030, 
helping to slow the rate of warming by as much as 30 percent, scientists 
have estimated. One of MethaneSAT’s main goals is to help bring about 
that change.

“Our only measure of success is: Do the emissions go down? That's our 
North Star,” Dr, Hamburg said.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/03/03/climate/methane-satellite-launch-global-warming.html?unlocked_article_code=1.aE0._WJY.zYqDCUlH-i1F&smid=url-share
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/03/03/climate/methane-satellite-launch-global-warming.html



/[ European Geosciences Union - tipping points is not a place in China ]/
*Tipping points in the Anthropocene*
The aim of the special issue (and associated "Tipping Points Status 
Report") is to produce a ground-breaking state-of-knowledge synthesis of 
tipping point research. We see an important niche for a special issue on 
the state of both "bad" and "good" tipping points in relation to climate 
change. The physical science element would update the status of climate 
and Earth system tipping points. The impacts and adaptation element 
would update tipping points across climate–ecological–social systems and 
their cascading interactions. The mitigation element would update the 
positive tipping points of transformative 
social–technological–ecological change.
https://esd.copernicus.org/articles/special_issue1247.html

- -

/[  Narrative Summary of the longer report - look for PDF file 78mb ]/
*Global Tipping Points*
Global Tipping Points is led by Professor Tim Lenton from the University 
of Exeter’s Global Systems Institute with the support of more than 200 
researchers from over 90 organisations in 26 countries.

The Global Tipping Points Report was launched at COP28 on 6 December 
2023. The report is an authoritative assessment of the risks and 
opportunities of both negative and positive tipping points in the Earth 
system and society...

    *Narrative Summary*
    Harmful tipping points in the natural world pose some of the gravest
    threats faced by humanity. Their triggering will severely damage our
    planet’s life-support systems and threaten the stability of our
    societies.
    For example, the collapse of the Atlantic Ocean’s great overturning
    circulation combined with global warming could cause half of the
    global area for growing wheat and maize to be lost. Five major
    tipping points are already at risk of being crossed due to warming
    right now and three more are threatened in the 2030s as the world
    exceeds 1.5°C global warming.

    The full damage caused by negative tipping points will be far
    greater than their initial impact. The effects will cascade through
    globalised social and economic systems, and could exceed the ability
    of some countries to adapt. Negative tipping points show that the
    threat posed by the climate and ecological crisis is far more severe
    than is commonly understood and is of a magnitude never before faced
    by humanity.

    Currently, there is no adequate global governance at the scale of
    the threats posed by negative tipping points. The world is on a
    disastrous trajectory. Crossing one harmful tipping point could
    trigger others, causing a domino effect of accelerating and
    unmanageable change to our life-support systems. Preventing this –
    and doing so equitably – should become the core goal and logic of a
    new global governance framework. Prevention is only possible if
    societies and economic systems are transformed to rapidly reduce
    emissions and restore nature.

    The current approach of linear incremental change favoured by many
    decision makers is no longer an option. Existing governance
    institutions and decision-making approaches need to adapt to
    facilitate transformational change.

    Crucial to achieving this transformational change are positive
    tipping point opportunities, where desirable changes in society
    become self-propelling. Concerted actions can create the enabling
    conditions for triggering rapid and large-scale transformation.
    Human history is flush with examples of abrupt social and
    technological change. Recent examples include the exponential
    increases in renewable electricity, the global reach of
    environmental justice movements, and the accelerating rollout of
    electric vehicles. Negative tipping point threats could be mitigated
    if there was a vast effort to trigger other positive tipping point
    opportunities
    Unfortunately, in the time lag during which appropriate governance
    and action might be realised, negative tipping points could still be
    triggered. This means that societies must urgently be made more
    resilient to minimise the vast and unequal harms. Critically, more
    resilient societies are also needed to ensure that collective focus
    on triggering positive tipping point opportunities can be sustained
    even through a negative tipping event. This resiliency can be
    achieved with ‘no regrets’ actions that anyway make societies more
    sustainable, equitable and prosperous.

    The existence of tipping points means that ‘business as usual’ is
    now over. Rapid changes to nature and society are occurring, and
    more are coming. If we don’t revise our governance approach, these
    changes could overwhelm societies as the natural world rapidly comes
    apart. Alternatively, with emergency global action and appropriate
    governance, collective interventions could harness the power of
    positive tipping point opportunities, helping navigate toward a
    thriving sustainable future.

https://global-tipping-points.org/

- -

/[ What can we do? Plenty, here's a brief summary  ]/
*Key recommendations*
*1 PHASE OUT FOSSIL FUELS AND LAND USE EMISSIONS NOW*
The scale of threat posed by Earth system tipping points underlines the 
critical importance of the 1.5 ̊C temperature goal and means that global 
mitigation should now assume an emergency footing. Fossil fuel emissions 
should be phased out worldwide before 2050. A rapid end to land use 
change emissions and shift to worldwide ecological restoration are also 
needed. Countries should reassess their highest possible ambitions 
accordingly, particularly wealthy, high-emitting nations.
*
2 STRENGTHEN ADAPTATION AND LOSS-AND-DAMAGE GOVERNANCE*
Some Earth system tipping points are now likely to be triggered, causing 
severe and spatially uneven impacts on societies and interconnected 
ecological, social and economic systems. Tipping point impacts will be 
felt worst by the most vulnerable communities within and between 
nations, with knock-on impacts for global inequality, the stability of 
the world economy, and geopolitics. This provides an urgent impetus to 
strengthen adaptation and loss-and -damage governance in the UNFCCC, 
adjusting existing frameworks and increasing resources to account for 
tipping point threats.
*
3 INCLUDE TIPPING POINTS IN NDCS AND THE GLOBAL STOCKTAKE*
Considerations of Earth system tipping point risks, corresponding 
action, and positive tipping point opportunities should be included in 
the Global Stocktake (GST), future revisions of Nationally Determined 
Contributions (NDCs), and in associated national and sub-national policy 
measures. Future GSTs should assess collective progress towards 
preventing Earth system tipping points, addressing potential impacts and 
fostering positive tipping points. All future NDCs should include 
national-scale systemic assessments of exposure to tipping point risks, 
measures that contribute to the prevention of tipping points, plans for 
managing potential impacts and strategies for fostering positive tipping 
points

*4 COORDINATE POLICY EFFORTS TO TRIGGER POSITIVE TIPPING POINTS*
Coordinated action by coalitions of state and non-state actors across 
governance, business and civil society can bring forward positive 
tipping points in politics, economies, technology, culture, and 
behaviour. A focus on ‘super-leverage points’ – for example policy 
mandates in high-emitting sectors such as power, road transport, green 
hydrogen/ ammonia and food – could create a cascade of positive changes.

*5 CONVENE A GLOBAL SUMMIT ON TIPPING POINTS*
The UN Secretary General should convene a global summit on the 
governance agenda for managing Earth system tipping point risks and 
maximising coordination on triggering positive tipping point 
opportunities to speed up mitigation and resilience. It should provide a 
forum for government, industry and civil society. As a matter of 
urgency, tipping point threats should also feature on the agenda of key 
international fora, including the 2024 meeting of the G20 in Brazil.
*
6 DEEPEN KNOWLEDGE OF TIPPING POINTS AND ITS TRANSLATION INTO ACTION*
The above efforts should be supported by investment in improved 
scientific knowledge and monitoring
of negative and positive tipping points, and a much improved 
science-policy engagement process to more effectively and rapidly 
convert knowledge into action. To help stimulate this process, we 
support calls for an IPCC Special Report on Tipping Points in the 
current assessment cycle.
https://global-tipping-points.org/summary-report/key-recommendations/



/[  In case you forget real snow, this is the heavy stuff today in Calif ]/
*3-3-2024 Truckee to Soda Springs, CA Huge snow totals piling up.mp4*
Live Storms Media
Mar 3, 2024
***NOT FOR BROADCAST***
Contact Brett Adair with Live Storms Media to license.
brett at livestormsmedia.com

Massive snow storm has buried areas in the Sierra. Semis buried in Truckee.
  And getting pulled out. Scenes along closed I-80. Plows. Drone.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--fHQ9upxVk



/[The news archive -  ]/
/*March 4, 2001 */
March 4, 2001: At an international climate summit in Italy, EPA 
Administrator Christine Todd Whitman insists that the Bush 
administration will take aggressive action to reduce carbon pollution. 
(By the end of the month, the Bush administration would officially 
disavow the Kyoto Protocol.)
http://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/italy/03/04/environment.climate/


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