Our not-too-distant future relatives could be in for a rough ride – even if we manage to curb our carbon emissions, a new study suggests.
Earth could warm by a whopping 7°C (12.6°F) by 2200 even if CO2 emissions are moderate, according to scientists at Germany‘s Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK).
Conditions would be too hot for common crops to grow properly, which would cause global food insecurity and even starvation.
Meanwhile, rising sea levels due to melting ice would force people to flee coastal cities as a result of flooding.
Also under such a scenario, intense extreme weather events such as drought, heatwaves, wildfires, tropical storms and flooding would be common.
Especially in the summer, temperatures could reach dangerously high levels, posing a lethal threat to the people of all ages.
Lead study author Christine Kaufhold at PIK said the findings highlight an ‘urgent need for even faster carbon reduction and removal efforts’.
‘We found that peak warming could be much higher than previously expected under low-to-moderate emission scenarios,’ she said.
Meanwhile, rising sea levels due to melting ice would force people to flee coastal cities as a result of flooding.
Also under such a scenario, intense extreme weather events such as drought, heatwaves, wildfires, tropical storms and flooding would be common.
Especially in the summer, temperatures could reach dangerously high levels, posing a lethal threat to the people of all ages.
Lead study author Christine Kaufhold at PIK said the findings highlight an ‘urgent need for even faster carbon reduction and removal efforts’.
‘We found that peak warming could be much higher than previously expected under low-to-moderate emission scenarios,’ she said.
