· 2 min read
illuminem summarizes for you the essential news of the day. Read the full piece on The Washington Post or enjoy below:
🗞️ Driving the news: Earth is in a rare "icehouse" phase, a period with significant ice coverage that has shaped human evolution
• Historically, the planet has been much hotter, with ice present only 13% of the last 485 million years
• Scientists warn that as humans rapidly increase carbon dioxide levels, Earth could transition back to a much warmer, iceless state
🔭 The context: Icehouse periods occur when carbon dioxide levels drop, often due to a combination of factors like volcanic activity, mountain formation, and tectonic shifts
• The last icehouse phase began 34 million years ago, providing conditions that may have contributed to human adaptability
• However, human-driven carbon emissions are pushing the climate into uncharted territory at an unprecedented rate
🌍 Why it matters for the planet: While Earth has survived major climate swings, rapid warming threatens global ecosystems and human civilization
• Scientists note that past mass extinctions often coincided with extreme temperature shifts
• Unlike natural changes that took thousands or millions of years, today’s warming is happening within a century, leaving little time for adaptation
⏭️ What's next: Humans have become the dominant force shaping the planet, emitting carbon at 100 times the rate of past volcanic activity
• Scientists argue that just as humans are accelerating warming, they also have the power to mitigate it by reducing emissions and removing carbon from the atmosphere
• The question remains whether humanity will act in time to avoid catastrophic consequences
💬 One quote: "Earth will be fine from global warming. It has mechanisms to absorb and adjust to the carbon dioxide. The problem is life." — Jessica Tierney, paleoclimatologist
📈 One stat: Carbon dioxide emissions from human activity today are 100 times greater than volcanic emissions during Earth’s past warmest periods
Click for more news covering the latest on climate change
