It was sad and very discouraging to see the US, the
world’s biggest economy dramatically withdraw from the Paris Accord. For those
who don’t know, the Paris Climate Agreement is an agreement within
the UN framework that involved states and their strategies to finance, adopt and put in place
strategic efforts to cut greenhouse emissions by the year 2020.
The US withdrawal from the accord aside was not good and does not remedy the matter. Global Warming is
still a massive headache. Record temperatures are being recorded both locally
and globally. However, the temperature rise is just but one of the myriads of
small and big signs of climate change. Herein, we are going to look at seven
apparent indicators of global warming.
#1. The Ocean Water is Getting
Warmer
The amount of heat energy dissipated by ocean water has
dramatically increased in the past 20 years. In fact, scientists have found out
that the top 0.5 miles of water in each ocean on the globe has gotten warmer. The major coral reefs are ailing, global fisheries are
suffering, and this temperature uptick is threatening marine ecosystems.
#2. The Arctic Sea Ice Expanse has
Gotten Smaller
The Arctic sea ice is melting away by approximately 3.2% every decade. In the past, the sea ice cover in
the Arctic region reached its lowest in September but regains its state by
winter. That’s no longer the case, according to Union of Concerned Scientists.
#3. Temperatures Over the Land are
Increasing
The frequent wildfires across California is a sure-fire sign
of rising temperatures and global warming. However, the change has been noticed
everywhere in the world, from Sarasota, California to Siberia, Russia.
#4. Bigger, More Power Storms
It seems that hurricanes, typhoons, and storms are getting
more ferocious, and bigger every passing year. Why? While climate change
doesn't essentially cause them, hurricanes become more intense and frequent as
sea water temps rise. In fact, 2017 saw the busiest hurricane season on record.
At the same time, never-seen-before powerful monsoons hit parts of Bangladesh,
Nepal, and India causing massive floods and scores of casualties.
#5. Air Over Sea Water is Getting
Warmer
Temperatures over sea waters are
increasing and this again contributes to the intensities of hurricanes, typhoons and monsoons.
#6. Oceans are becoming more Acidic
Interestingly, the acidity levels in our oceans have been
risen by about 26% since the tumultuous industrial revolution. What a wake-up
call, right? That’s because more carbon is being trapped in warmer ocean water,
killing off more corals.
#7. Rising Sea Levels
This one is a detriment to all the coastal residents. Everyone knows that sea waters
have been pushing boundaries for the last century or so. In fact, scientific
data shows that sea level has been gradually rising at around 0.1 inches since
1900.
