Communicating Climate Science
When we talk about climate change with our friends, family or colleagues, we should be knowledgeable, accurate and persuasive. Here are a few facts to keep in mind.
* There’s a difference between climate and weather. Weather varies from day to day, even hour to hour, while climate is measured over decades. According to NASA, “The difference between weather and climate is a measure of time. Weather is what conditions of the atmosphere are over a short period of time, and climate is how the atmosphere ‘behaves’ over relatively long periods of time.”
* It’s getting hotter. 2023 was the hottest year on record. We recently wrapped up the warmest decade on record. Scientists report that 2023 was the hottest year on record for our oceans. Every decade since the 1970s has been warmer than the previous decade.
* There's a strong scientific consensus that the world is warming, and that humans are a major part of the problem. The U.S. National Academy of Sciences estimates that 97% to 98% of climate scientists agree that our fossil fuel emissions are warming the planet, and that rising temperatures are putting our future at risk.
* Climate change can manifest itself in a number of different ways: higher temperatures, stronger storms, coastal flooding, longer and more severe droughts, more extreme wildfires, lower stream flows, higher water temperatures, ocean acidification, changing precipitation patterns, earlier snow-melt and run-off, lower snowpack, rising sea levels, declines in forest health, insect infestations, an increase in invasive species, etc. All these aspects of our changing climate can have serious impacts on fish & game populations, and on wildlife habitat.
YOU CAN LEARN MORE ABOUT CLIMATE SCIENCE AT THE LINKS BELOW:
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
US National Academy of Sciences (US NAS)
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
National Climate Assessment (NCA2018)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
WATCH ASTROPHYSICIST NEIL DEGRASSE TYSON EXPLAIN THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WEATHER AND CLIMATE CHANGE.