Climate Explainers

Each of the Climate Explainers offers an overview of a specific topic related to climate change, in addition to solutions, and related topics written by scientists and experts.

 

We've included a brief snapshot and description of some of the covered topics below. The provided links will take you directly to each Climate Explainer housed on MIT's Climate Portal. 

 

You are also encouraged to browse the Climate Explainers directly in the Climate Portal.

Titlesort ascending Quick Explanation Learn more at climate.mit.edu
Wildfires Wildfires are becoming more frequent and sever as a result of climate change, as forest in arid parts of the world become hotter and drier. https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/wildfires
Urban Heat Islands The urban heat island effect is a phenomenon whereby cities experience higher air temperatures than the surrounding countryside, making them more vulnerable to a warming Earth https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/urban-heat-islands
The Paris Agreement The Paris Climate Agreement is a treaty that brings all the world's peoples into a common effort to combat climate change. https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/paris-agreement
The National Climate Assessment The National Climate Assessment is a U.S. government report to inform decision-making related to the impacts of climate change in the United States. https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/national-climate-assessment
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is a United Nations body widely considered the world's top authority on climate science. https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/intergovernmental-panel-climate-change
Soil-Based Carbon Sequestration Soil-based carbon sequestration is a way to remove CO2 from the air and store it somewhere it can't easily escape: in soils, which store carbon in the form of broken-down plant matter https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/soil-based-carbon-sequestration
Sea Level Rise Sea level around the world are rising because of climate change as warming ocean waters and melting ice cause the oceans to encroach on the world's coasts https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/sea-level-rise
Renewable Energy Renewable energy is energy from sources, like wind, solar, and hydropower, that we cannot run out of. https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/renewable-energy
Radiative Forcing Radiative forcing is what happens when the amount of energy that enters the Earth's atmosphere is different from the amount of energy that leaves it. https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/radiative-forcing
Phytoplankton By taking up carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air, phytoplankton play a large role in the natural carbon cycle, helping to regulate the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere and keep the Earth’s climate in balance. https://climate.mit.edu/explainers/phytoplankton

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