Climate change may not totally wipe out the human species
In what passes for good news on global warming these days, a new study has determined that climate sensitivity — the extent to which climate will react to increased greenhouse-gas levels — is likely within the mid-range of predictions. That means an atmospheric doubling of GHG levels, which everyone expects, will raise the global average temperature between roughly 2.5 and 8 degrees — not the wacky 16-degree jump some had warned of. “This still commits us to quite a bit of climate change, but it leaves the door open to avoiding the largest and most devastating consequences,” said lead researcher Gabriele C. Hegerl. Of course, a rise of 7 or 8 degrees in global average temperature will ensure massive storms, droughts, and sea-level rises, sufficient to hobble human society. But a 16-degree rise would be much more likely to wipe us out entirely. So, um … we have a chance of maybe surviving! Who says the media never reports the good news?
