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At a recent seminar, NASA climate scientist Patrick Taylor stressed the urgent need to combat climate change and safeguard our planet's critical systems.
He showcased NASA's Earth-observing fleet, which monitors crucial climate indicators and offers a comprehensive perspective on Earth's climate.
Taylor highlighted the alarming decline in the Arctic Sea ice and the melting of land ice, which accounts for around 25% of global sea-level rise. He cited evidence of climate change caused by increased greenhouse gas emissions and the resulting warming effect known as the greenhouse effect.
During the seminar hosted by US Black Engineer magazine, Taylor emphasized the urgent need to combat climate change and highlighted the interconnectedness of our world, stressing the importance of taking proactive measures to safeguard our planet.
He showcased Earth's interconnected systems and stressed the vulnerability of critical systems like food, water, energy, and health.
Taylor presented compelling visuals generated by NASA's Group on Earth Observations modeling system, demonstrating the repercussions of the choices made in one part of the world.
He reflected on his journey as a climate scientist and emphasized the need to understand and predict climate change for societal resilience.
Taylor underscored the significance of NASA's Earth-observing fleet, consisting of over 20 satellites that monitor crucial climate indicators such as temperature, clouds, sea level, and ice.
These satellites offer a comprehensive perspective on Earth's climate, enabling scientists to track long-term changes. Taylor cited compelling evidence such as the global surface temperature record and the alarming decline in the Arctic Sea ice, underscoring the urgency for action.
Furthermore, Taylor drew attention to the melting of land ice, especially the Greenland ice sheet. According to data, Greenland has lost an average of 279 gigatons of ice annually since May 2002, accounting for around 25% of global sea-level rise.
Taylor highlighted that sea ice alone has been lost, four times the size of Texas in the last forty years, which is alarming. The data from NASA's GRACE supports the evidence of climate change caused by increased greenhouse gas emissions, which trap heat in the atmosphere, leading to a warming effect known as the greenhouse effect.
The rise in average global temperatures over a prolonged period is called climate warming, and it is a consequence of climate change resulting from the increased concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. As these gases accumulate, they trap more heat, causing a gradual increase in temperatures worldwide. Read the full story in the upcoming USBE Magazine.