Climate science
Human-caused warming postpones next ice age by 50,000 years
NEWS: Scientists forecast long delay to return of glaciers as carbon emissions screw the Earth’s climate systems
Rampant El Nino offers glimpse of future climate risks
ANALYSIS: Weather phenomenon exposes how unprepared world is for economic, security and humanitarian impacts of global warming
Brazil inflames forest fires with pro-deforestation laws
NEWS: New laws under consideration will likely spark more tree-cutting − despite serious drought already contributing to a big increase in vast destructive fires
UK tree-planting push could offset farming footprint – study
NEWS: Country could cut emissions by converting arable land to absorb more carbon dioxide, but risks displacing climate impact of food production overseas
Giant icebergs fertilise the ocean, sucking carbon – study
NEWS: Nutrients in meltwater sustain greater numbers of CO2-absorbing ocean algae than previously thought, researchers find
Greenland ice melt speeds up sea level rise
NEWS: Scientists have found evidence suggesting that melting icecap water from the interior of Greenland is adding to sea level rise faster than previously realised
The Anthropocene: Are humans causing a new geological epoch?
ANALYSIS: Researchers argue greenhouse gases, waste and nuclear fallout are making their mark on rocks, but they still have to convince the traditionalists
US hit by multiple billion-dollar weather disasters in 2015
NEWS: Costly floods and droughts roiled states in 2nd hottest and 3rd wettest year on record, says NOAA
Climate denial is alive and kicking say scientists
NEWS: Study mines 16,000 documents from conservative thinktanks for insights into how they “manufacture doubt” on climate change
Drought has hit global cereal crops harder since 1980s
NEWS: Extreme weather is increasingly affecting agricultural production, study reveals, with biggest losses in developed countries
Arctic methane emissions ‘greater’ than previous estimates
NEWS: Methane, a key greenhouse gas, is released from Arctic soils not only in the short summer period but also during the bitterly cold winters
No hiding for polluters as carbon-tracking satellite numbers rise
NEWS: China primed to launch two carbon-tracking probes in 2016, but global data coordination needs improving says head of European Space Agency
Obama urged to block future Arctic oil drilling
NEWS: Five-year offshore oil plan set for approval later this year, which a future president would find hard to overturn
Climate change could dry up power production – study
NEWS: Heatwaves and droughts in a hotter planet to cripple power stations within decades without adaptation measures, researchers warn
Seychelles dodges ‘debt hole’ with pledge to protect oceans
NEWS: Climate ambassador of tiny island nation hails innovative debt swap in return for agreement to safeguard vast area of sea
Smog, divestment, Keystone: The stories that defined 2015
IN REVIEW: No country was left untouched by the shifting climate and energy geopolitical plates in the last 12 months. Here’s our roundup.
UN: Freak weather a warning to step up climate defences
NEWS: After severe flooding and shock tornadoes, now is time get serious about precautionary policies to counter climate impacts says UN disaster chief
North Pole set for December ‘heatwave’
NEWS: Monster storm over Iceland likely to push warm air over Arctic, sending temperatures soaring from -30C to freezing
Global weather extremes underline climate threat, say experts
NEWS: El Nino, record heat and natural variability combine to highlight growing threats in a warming world
2015: The year in extreme weather
BLOG: Meteorological madness from extreme heat to cyclones and wildfires has marked the year, in a taste of global warming impacts