Climate Time Machine
Introduction: Tracking Global Changes Over Time This series of visualizations show how some of the key indicators of climate change, such as temperature, sea ice extent and carbon dioxide concentrations, have changed in Earth's recent history. Use the left and right arrow keys to navigate between topics. Sea Ice Extent: This visualization shows the annual Arctic sea ice minimum from 1979 to 2007. At the end of each summer, the sea ice cover reaches its minimum extent, leaving what is called the perennial ice cover. The area of the perennial ice has been steadily decreasing since the satellite record began in 1979. (Credit: NASA/Goddard Scientific Visualization Studio) Carbon Dioxide Concentration: This visualization shows the amount of annual carbon dioxide emissions produced by the top 12 nations or regions from 1980-2004. Units are given in million metric tons of CO2 emitted from fossil fuel consumption. (Source: U.S. Department of Energy) Sea Level: Recent satellite observations have detected a thinning of parts of the Greenland ice sheet at lower elevations. A partial melting of this ice sheet would cause a 1-meter (3-foot) rise; if melted completely, the ice sheet contains enough water to raise sea level by 5-7 meters (16-23 feet). This visualization shows the effect on coastal regions for each meter of sea level rise, up to 6 meters (6.6 feet). Land that would be covered in water is shaded red. (Credit: Center for Remote Sensing of Ice Sheets) Global Average Temperatures: This color-coded map shows a progression of changing global surface temperatures from 1880 to 2006, the warmest ranked year on record. Dark blue indicates areas cooler than average. Dark red indicates areas warmer than average. (Credit: NASA/Goddard Scientific Visualization Studio). |