Ilmastooppi

Ilmastooppi, also known as climate change, refers to long-term alterations in statistical distribution of weather patterns over multiple decades or longer. These changes are primarily driven by human activities, particularly the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation, which increase heat-trapping greenhouse gas concentrations in the Earth's atmosphere. The primary greenhouse gases involved are carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and fluorinated gases.

The scientific consensus is that the Earth's climate is warming due to human-induced emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases. This warming is causing a range of impacts, including rising global temperatures, changing precipitation patterns, increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and shifts in the timing of seasonal events.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has documented these changes in its assessment reports, which are based on a comprehensive review of scientific literature. The IPCC's Fifth Assessment Report, published in 2014, concluded that it is extremely likely that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century.

Addressing climate change requires global cooperation and significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. This involves transitioning to renewable energy sources, improving energy efficiency, and implementing sustainable land-use practices. The Paris Agreement, adopted in 2015, is a landmark international treaty aimed at limiting global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius.