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Study suggests climate change will cause monthly heat records to break each year around the world
A new study suggests that climate change will cause monthly heat records to break each year for many places around the globe.
LOS ANGELES - Scientists predict many parts of the world will see record-breaking temperatures almost every month of the year because of climate change, according to a new study.
The study, published in the journal Nature Climate Change, involved scientists using 22 climate models to look at how fast the average record temperature would be set for all 12 months.
Those models helped scientists determine that by the end of the 21st century the record for the average monthly temperatures would break in about 58 percent of the world each year. Scientists also noted that 67 percent of the least-developed countries around the globe and 68 percent of small islands would be impacted the most.
“Changes in intensity or frequency of extreme climate events can profoundly increase the disruption caused by climate change,” the study notes. “The more extreme these events, the greater potential to push ecosystems and communities beyond their ability to cope.”
The study indicated that the temperatures around the globe are increasing because of rising global greenhouse gas emissions.
Scientists also looked at models where greenhouse emissions were reduced and found that even if the levels drop, the “unprecedented monthly temperature extremes are projected to occur frequently over the coming decades.”