Posted on 5 January 2013 by John Hartz

2012: another year of living dangerously

The signals could hardly be clearer: climate change is on the way, driven largely by the burning of fossil fuels and other human activity.

Climate: another year of living dangerously, Editorial Board, The Guardian (UK), Dec 31, 2012

2012: the year we did our best to abandon the natural world

Emissions are rising, ice is melting and yet the response of governments is simply to pretend that none of it is happening.

2012: the year we did our best to abandon the natural world by George Monbiot, The Guardian (UK)

2013 will be Year Zero in our climate battle

Think of 2013 as the Year Zero in the battle over climate change, one in which we are going to have to win big, or lose bigger. This is a terrible thing to say, but not as  terrible as the reality that you can see in footage of glaciers vanishing, images of the entire surface of the Greenland Ice Shield melting this summer, maps of Europe's; future in which just being in southern Europe when the heat hits will be catastrophic, let alone in more equatorial realms.

2013 Will Be Year Zero In Our Climate Battle by Rebecca Solnit, Mother Jones/Truthout, Dec 31, 2012

A year of weather extremes in Sri Lanka

“Water, the lack of it and too much of it, will be the biggest climate induced (factor) determining the way Sri Lankans live in the future,” W L Sumathipala, former head of the climate change unit of the ministry of environment, told IPS.

Between Drought and Floods – A Year of Extremes in Sri Lanka by Amantha Perera, Inter Press Service (IPS), Dec 30, 3012

An antidote for climate contrarianism

I would guess a few Green readers had the experience, over the holidays, of arguing yet again about global warming with a parent or brother-in-law who thinks it’s all a big hoax. Maybe there’s some undiscovered substance in roast turkey that makes people want to pick fights around the dinner table.

An Antidote for Climate Contrarianism by Justin Gillis, Green Blog, New York Times, Jan 4, 2013

Cost of combating climate change surges

An agreement by almost 200 nations to curb rising greenhouse gas emissions from 2020 will be far more costly than taking action now to tackle climate change, according to research published on Wednesday.

Quick measures to cut emissions would give a far better chance of keeping global warming within an agreed U.N. limit of 2 degrees Celsius (3.6F) above pre-industrial times to avert more floods, heatwaves, droughts and rising sea levels.

Cost of combating climate change surges as world delays - study by Alister Doyle, Reuters, Jan 2, 2013 

El Niño and Climate Change

The cycle of Pacific Ocean surface water warming and cooling has become more variable in recent decades, suggesting El Niño may strengthen under climate change.

Study Strengthens Link between El Niño and Climate Change by Lauren Morello, ClimateWire/Scientific American, Jan 4, 2013

England's rainiest year on record & global warming

Senior climate scientists are linking global warming to the UK Met Office's announcement yesterday (3 January) that 2012 was England’s rainiest year since records began.

Scientists link global warming to England’s rainiest year on record, EurActiv.com, Jan 4, 2013 

Light absorption speeding Arctic ice melt

The record-setting disappearance of Arctic sea ice this fall was an indication to many climate scientists and ice experts that the pace of climate change was outstripping predictions

Now a new study published this week in the journal Geophysical Research Letters provides a look at a dynamic that may further accelerate the process: the rate at which the ocean underneath the ice absorbs sunlight.

Light Absorption Speeding Arctic Ice Melt by Fleciity Barringer, Green Blog, New York Times, Dec 31, 2012

Planet offers independent record of global warming

The thermometers aren't going haywire. The planet, itself, is recording the same reality. The Earth is warming, and doing so at a quickening pace.

A new compilation of temperature records derived from geological samples such as ice cores, lake sediment layers and coral growth shows the same warming trends from 1880 to 1995 that are reflected by thermometer readings over that time.

Boulder researcher: Planet offers independent record of global warming by Charlie Brennan, DailyCamera.com, Dec 30, 2012

Volcanic activity and climate change

Rising sea levels caused by global warming could fuel more volcanic eruptions, possibly resulting in mass extinctions.

Climate Change May Increase Volcanic Eruptions by Tia Ghose, LiveScience/Scientific American, Jan 3, 2013