Global Warming Maps

The following climate maps are temperature and precipitation projections for the near future. They were generated from solid scientific evidence a few years ago, but now, unfortunately, because of more recent evidence about the extent of greenhouse gas emissions, appear optimistic:


Larger, 100% versions of these maps can be viewed at the bottom of this page (or you can click on the above maps also). I created these particular renditions of these maps for Encyclopædia Britannica in 2008 from data supplied by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

Below is a map showing the disintegration of Antarctica's Larsen ice shelf in 2002, a bellweather event that alerted many to the reality of global warming (click on map to see the 100% image):


The following map shows the diminishing extent of sea ice in the Arctic Ocean. Summer 2007 set a record for loss in sea ice, as determined by aerial extent.

The volume of sea ice, possibly a more critical factor affecting future climate scenarios, has also been determined from satellite photos, which indicate that Arctic sea ice has thinned by more than 40% since 2004 (Nasa satellites reveal extent of Arctic sea ice loss).

A direct consequence of increasing global temperatures and the melting of ice in the polar regions, especially the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets, will be a rise in sea level. A worse-case scenario is that mean sea level will rise by 3 meters, or nearly 20 feet, by the end of the century. Currently a more modest (though also catastophic) 1-meter to 2-meter rise is predicted, but natural systems can change in unpredictable ways and "abrupt climate change" having more severe consequences is certainly possible. A 3-meter rise in sea level will flood many low-lying coastal areas and submerge many islands. The following map shows the effect of a 3-meter rise in sea level on several Atlantic coastal areas (a larger version of this map is also available below, or by clicking on this map):