What is Climate Change and Global

Heating and How Does it Work to

Affect Us
Prologue
This article is about the definition of climate change and how global heating (aka global
warming) works. At the end of this article, you will find a link to a comprehensive four-
part plan for what you can do to help manage climate change and global warming aka
global heating.

To counterbalance these disruptive facts, in this article, you will also find a link to the
many surprising benefits that you will experience as we work toward resolving this great
challenge, opportunity, and evolutionary adventure.

The not-for-profit Job One for Humanity organization is primarily a place focused on
educating individuals and businesses on how to both survive and thrive through
the soon-coming climate change and global warming consequences. 

To formulate your own informed global warming opinions for what our future climate will
look like, it is essential to know:

1. what climate change is,

2. how is global warming created,
3. how the life-critical stability of the global climate is affected by global warming, and
4. how this will personally affect you and your future and how soon will that happen.

If you are a diligent person who is serious about planning your future and avoiding
unnecessary suffering and financial loss, this may be the most important website you
may ever read.

What is climate change & global warming?

In this illustration below you will see a few of the many climate change and global
warming consequences.

 
 

Climate change (aka Global warming) is a term used for the observed century-scale rise
in the average temperature of the Earth's climate system and its related effects.
Scientists are more than 95% certain that nearly all of global warming is caused by
increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and other human-
caused emissions.

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Within the earth's atmosphere, accumulating greenhouse gases like water

vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone are the gases within the
atmosphere that absorb and emit heat radiation. Increasing or decreasing amounts of
greenhouse gases within the atmosphere act to either hold in or release more of the
heat from the sun.

Our atmosphere is getting hotter, more turbulent, and more unpredictable because of
the “boiling and churning” effect caused by the heat-trapping greenhouse gases within
the upper layers of our atmosphere. With each increase of carbon, methane, or other
greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere, our local weather and global climate are
further agitated, heated, and “boiled.”

Global warming is gauged by the increase in the average global temperature of the
Earth. Along with our currently increasing average global temperature, some parts of
the Earth may actually get colder while other parts get warmer—hence the idea of
average global temperature. Greenhouse gas-caused atmospheric heating and
agitation also increase the unpredictability of the weather and climate and dramatically
increase the severity, scale, and frequency of storms, droughts, wildfires, and extreme
temperatures.

Global warming can reach levels of irreversibility as it has now, and increasing levels of
global warming can eventually reach an extinction level where humanity and all life on
earth will end. (Click here to discover why total human extinction is not realistic or
probable and the worst humanity will experience is near-total extinction (50 to 90+% of
humanity going extinct.)

Runaway global heating is partially defined as a continuum of increasing temperature

that causes the global climate to rapidly change until those higher temperatures become
irreversible on practical human time scales. The eventual temperature range associated
with triggering and marking the beginning of the runaway global warming processes is
an increase in average global temperature of 2.2°-4° Celsius (4°-7.2° Fahrenheit) above
preindustrial levels. For the full definition of runaway global warming and how this has
happened to us, click here.

Extinction level global warming is defined as temperatures exceeding preindustrial

levels by 5-6° Celsius (9-10.8° Fahrenheit) or the extinction of all planetary life, or the
eventual loss of our atmosphere. If our atmosphere is also lost, this is referred to as
runaway global warming. The result would be similar to what is thought to have
happened to Venus 4 billion years ago, resulting in a carbon-rich atmosphere and
minimum surface temperatures of 462 °C.

The temperature levels described above for irreversible and extinction-level global
warming are not hard and rigid boundaries, but boundary ranges that describe the
related consequences and their intensities within a certain level of global warming.
These temperature boundary levels may be modified by future research. More about
how irreversible global warming and extinction-level global warming can come about
because of complex interactions will be explained in the tipping point information will set
the foundation necessary to understand how we are already creating the conditions that
have not only created irreversible global warming, but also extinction-level global
warming if we keep going as we are now.

 The concentration of the human-caused carbon pollution of our atmosphere has

nearly doubled in 60 years—and it is continuing to escalate at faster and faster rates.

 Carbon in the atmosphere from fossil fuel burning isn’t our only problem.

 While the situation is critical, it is still possible to slow and lessen global warming
enough for the climate to establish a new, stable equilibrium. However, that
equilibrium may be unlike anything previously seen in Earth’s history and it may not
be suitable for humanity to thrive.

How increasing carbon dioxide in our

atmosphere is tracked and measured  
Atmospheric carbon from fossil fuel burning is the main human-caused factor in the
escalating global warming we are experiencing now. The current level of carbon in our
atmosphere is tracked using what is called the Keeling curve. The Keeling curve
measures atmospheric carbon in parts per million (ppm).

Each year, many measurements are taken at Mauna Loa, Hawaii to determine the parts
per million (ppm) of carbon in the atmosphere at that time. At the beginning of
the Industrial Revolution (1) around 1880, before we began fossil fuel burning, our
atmospheric carbon ppm level was at about 270. Here is the current Keeling curve
graph for where we are today:

 
 Keeling Curve Monthly CO2 graph, via Show.earth (2)

As you can see, we are not doing very well. As of Jan of 2022 we are at about carbon
420 ppm. In this section of this website (on the Learn pull down,) you will learn what this
exponentially rising carbon means to your future. You also will see other graphs that will
show you how today’s atmospheric carbon levels compare to those of our near and far
distant past (hundreds, thousands, hundreds of thousands, and millions of years ago).

No matter what you hear in the media, if the total carbon ppm level is not going down or
carbon’s average ppm level per year is not falling or at least slowing its steep increase,
(3) we are not making any significant progress on resolving the escalating climate
change emergency. Total atmospheric carbon and carbon’s average ppm level per
year are the most dependable measurements of our progress and a predictor of what
will be happening with global warming and its many consequences.
How do we know if we're making honest
progress in reducing carbon dioxide to
reduce global warming?
There are at least two ways we will be able to tell that we are making honest progress in
reducing global warming:

1. When we see our average annual increase in carbon ppm levels (currently at about
3 ppm per year) begin dropping, remaining at the current level, or at least rising at a
slower rate.
2. When we start seeing the above Keeling graph levels drop from the current carbon
ppm level (approximately 414 ppm) to carbon 350-325 ppm. (How we do this is in
the free Job One Plan.)

A quick look at the historic rise of carbon

in the atmosphere since the Industrial
Revolution
The following graph demonstrates that carbon has been rising in the atmosphere long
before 1960. With the introduction of fossil fuels, carbon began rising at the beginning of
the Industrial Revolution around 1880.

In the graph below, you will notice that the curve of carbon increasing in the atmosphere
proceeds from about 1880 to 1950 in a gradual linear progression. From 1950 to 2000
and beyond, carbon increases in the atmosphere is a far steeper, more exponential
curve.

 
 Image via Stephen Stoft at zfacts.com  (4) (5)

How escalating global warming

destabilizes the climate and creates
economic, political, and social chaos
It is important that we understand that the stability of our climate is the essential
foundation for running our personal and business lives smoothly and successfully. If the
global climate continues to destabilize because of escalating global warming, most
people will not connect the dots to see that their normal lives will also destabilize until it
is too late.

Most people do not think about:

1. What will happen when food production drops due to drought, floods, and extreme
heat, which will cause food prices to soar and many foods to be scarce.
2. How storms will continue to grow more violent, costly, and cataclysmic. Damage to
homes, businesses, and infrastructure will increase, as well as occur in more and
larger areas.
 3. How our normal lives will gradually grind to a near halt.

It is not an overstatement to say most people do not understand how much of the
stability, predictability, and success of their daily lives (and futures) is completely
dependent upon a stable temperature range and a stable climate. By and large, they
take the ubiquitous general stability of the climate for granted, almost as though it could
never change.

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The global climate’s heat-controlling

systems and subsystems
Within the climate’s many systems and subsystems, there are factors that directly and
indirectly affect the overall stability of the global climate and our temperature. One of
these factors is that some climate systems and subsystems have carbon-
eating or carbon-releasing qualities.

When we say something has a carbon-eating quality, we mean that it takes carbon out
of the atmosphere and helps to reduce global warming. When we say something has a
carbon-releasing quality, we mean that it puts carbon back into the atmosphere, which
causes an increase in global warming. The climate’s carbon-eating or
releasing subsystems, which can raise or lower the Earth's average temperature and
the climate’s stability are:

Oceans with their currents, different water temperatures, and

descending and ascending layers hold absorbed carbon or heat. Initially, the
oceans absorb carbon and help us. But when too much carbon is absorbed, the oceans
begin the process of emitting carbon back into the atmosphere. That will raise
temperatures.

 
Forests can either eat or release carbon based on the temperature and other
conditions. When trees die, their stored carbon is released back into the atmosphere.
Trees normally take carbon out of the atmosphere. If certain conditions exist or it gets
too warm trees will take less carbon out of the air.

Soils can also eat or release carbon depending upon their condition under heat
variables. This is due to carbon deposits from plant life.

The carbon-eating and oxygen-producing plankton in the oceans. If

the oceans absorb too much carbon from global warming, they become acidic—
specifically carbonic acid. This acidity will eventually kill some or all of the carbon-eating
and oxygen-producing plankton. If we kill off this necessary plankton, we will find
ourselves with insufficient oxygen in a world no one will be able to endure.

The carbon and methane-releasing volcanoes. Sustained large-scale

volcanic activity can drastically affect the environment. If the volcano is large enough,
such as with a supervolcano, the eruption could actually cool the planet and create two
or three years of nuclear winter. Such a development creates its own extinction-level
destruction in the form of severe negative impacts on agriculture and other living
systems.

The climate also has systems that produce, reflect, or absorb heat. These systems can
also raise or lower global temperature. Some of the climate’s heat-producing, reflecting,
or absorbing systems and subsystems are:

The total amount of heat-increasing water vapor in the atmosphere. Atmospheric

water vapor is the most important human-caused greenhouse gas increasing
atmospheric temperature. The higher the temperature, the more water vapor escapes
into the atmosphere from evaporation, turning this cycle into a vicious self-
reinforcing positive feedback loop.
 

The total amount of heat-increasing carbon and methane polluting the

atmosphere from our fossil fuel burning, fracking, big agribusiness, and other uses.

The total area of heat-reflecting white snow and ice cover on the planet at any one
time (known as the albedo effect). This includes the glaciers and massive Arctic and
Antarctic ice packs that are heat-reflecting.

The amount of heat-increasing methane is released by tundra and

permafrost when these methane pockets thaw.

 
 

The amount of heat-increasing methane released from methane clathrate

crystals from ocean-bottom sediments as ocean temperatures rise. If this happens as
quickly as scientists theorize it did millions of years ago, we're looking at
extinction. (Please click here to watch a short video that brilliantly explains the extinction
process once we start releasing methane clathrate from our coastal shelves. New
research shows we actually begin this release process once we reach 5°C and by 6°C it
is in full bloom.) 

The temporary heat-reducing effects from volcanic soot entering the atmosphere

and reflecting some of the sun’s heat.

Slight changes in the earth’s axis position can also raise or lower the

average global temperature range depending upon the angle of axis shift. (6)  These
temperature-affecting changes in the earth’s axis are called Milankovitch cycles.
These 21,000 to 26,000 orbital cycles have an immense effect on global temperatures.
Currently, we should be in a decreasing (cooling) phase of the cycle, but there are too
many excess greenhouse gases in the atmosphere for the planet. (7)

 
What is climate destabilization?
Now that you have a quick overview of some of the systems within the climate and how
they work to increase or decrease the global temperature, it's time to look at the climate
reacting as a unified whole system.

The global climate system or its key subsystem processes can quickly move from one
fairly stable state of dynamic balance and equilibrium into a new transitional state of
instability and greater unpredictability. Eventually, the global climate will settle at a new,
but different, stable state of dynamic equilibrium and balance, but it will be at a new
level and range (a dynamic equilibrium is not static or unchanging; it varies within a
range of some climate quality, e.g., average temperature, average humidity). The
preceding suggests that a useful and accurate definition for climate destabilization
would be:

“A transitional state of escalating global climate instability. This state is characterized by

greater unpredictability, which lasts until the global climate eventually finds a new and
different stable state of dynamic equilibrium and balance at some different level of
temperature and other climate qualities from what it has held for hundreds or thousands
of years." —Alexei Turchin, The Structure of the Global Catastrophe

The three degrees of climate destabilization

Climate destabilization can be said to come in in three degrees. The three degrees
defined below help individuals and organizations better understand
the relative boundary ranges and levels of threat that is occurring or will occur based on
measured increases in global warming. The temperature, carbon ppm, and loss or cost
levels described below for each degree of climate destabilization are not hard and rigid
boundaries, but boundary ranges designed to help you think about a set of related
consequence intensities closely associated with that degree of climate destabilization.
The temperature, carbon, cost, and loss boundary levels below may be modified by
future research.

The three degrees and definitions for climate destabilization are:

Catastrophic climate destabilization is associated with a measurement of carbon

400-450 ppm. At the estimated current 1.2 Celsius (2.2° Fahrenheit) of temperature
increase, we are already in the beginning stages of catastrophic climate destabilization.
The eventual temperature range associated with catastrophic climate destabilization will
be an increase in the average global temperature of about 2.7° Celsius (4.9°
Fahrenheit). When global warming-caused storms, floods, seasonal disruption, wildfires,
and droughts begin to cost a nation 30 to 100 billion dollars per incident to repair, we
will have reached the level of catastrophic climate destabilization. We are already in this
phase of climate destabilization. Hurricane Sandy in New York cost the United States
between 50 and 60 billion dollars to repair.

Irreversible climate destabilization is associated with a measurement beginning around

carbon 425 -450 ppm. The eventual temperature range associated with triggering
irreversible climate destabilization is an increase in average global temperature of 2.2°-
2.7° Celsius (4°-4.9° Fahrenheit) to 4° Celsius (7.2° Fahrenheit). 

Irreversible climate destabilization and mass human extinction occur when we

have reached carbon 500-600 ppm. At this point, we have moved away from the
relatively stable dynamic equilibrium of temperature and other key weather conditions,
which we have experienced during the hundreds of thousands of years of our previous
cyclical Ice Ages. Once a new dynamic equilibrium finally stabilizes for the climate in the
above carbon ppm ranges, we will have crossed from catastrophic climate
destabilization into irreversible climate destabilization and mass human extinction.

Irreversible climate destabilization is a new average global temperature range and a set
of destabilizing climate consequences we most likely will never recover from—or that
could take hundreds or even thousands of years to correct or re-balance. Irreversible
climate destabilization will eventually cost the nations of the world hundreds of trillions
of dollars. 

Total Extinction-level climate destabilization. The total extinction-level climate

destabilization as defined here is associated with beginning around the measurement of
carbon parts per million in the atmosphere in the range of 600 ppm or more. The
eventual temperature range associated with extinction-level climate destabilization is an
increase in average global temperature of 5° to 6° Celsius (9° to 10.8° Fahrenheit).

Extinction-level climate destabilization is also defined as the eventual extinction of

approximately up to half or more of the species on earth and most, if not all, of
humanity. This occurs when the climate destabilizes to a level where the human species
and/or other critical human support species can no longer successfully exist. Extinction-
level climate destabilization has occurred several times previously during Earth's
evolution.

Extinction-level climate destabilization will cost the nations of the world hundreds of
trillions of dollars and billions of lives—maybe the survival of the human species itself.
There is a possibility that extinction-level climate destabilization may never correct or re-
balance itself to some new equilibrium level. If the climate were able to correct or re-
balance itself from this level of destabilization, it could take hundreds, thousands, or
even hundreds of thousands of years.

To make matters worse, every time we enter a new level of climate destabilization, the
frequency, severity, and scale of global warming consequences will increase and
everything becomes more unpredictable.

How long carbon dioxide remains in our

atmosphere
Carbon dioxide is currently the most important greenhouse gas related to global
warming. For the longest time, our scientists believed that once in the atmosphere,
carbon dioxide remains there for about 100 years. New research shows that is not true.
75% of that carbon will not disappear for centuries to thousands of years. The other
25% stays forever. We are creating a serious global warming crisis that will last far
longer than we ever thought possible.

"The lifetime of fossil fuel CO2 in the atmosphere is a few centuries, plus 25 percent
that lasts essentially forever. The next time you fill your tank, reflect upon this...[the
climatic impacts of releasing fossil fuel CO2 to the atmosphere will last longer than
Stonehenge… Longer than time capsules, longer than nuclear waste, far longer than
the age of human civilization so far." —“Carbon is forever,” Mason Inman (8)

 
Today’s global warming and climate
destabilization is a fatal threat to our future
Our global climate has held many different, relatively stable states over its 4.5-billion-
year history. For hundreds of thousands of years, our planet’s climate has moved within
a fairly stable range of dynamic equilibrium, known as the cycle of Ice Ages. This is an
alternating pattern of an Ice Age, followed by a period of receding ice.

Humanity has flourished since the last Ice Age because of the warmer, agriculture-
friendly temperatures and lack of glacial ice cover. As our current global climate moves
into a human-caused destabilization period (from its previously stable state of the Ice
Age to non-Ice Age cyclical periods) and into a new state of dynamic equilibrium, many
rapid changes are occurring. These changes are characterized, in part, by droughts,
floods, wildfires, superstorms, and the changing of previously established seasonal
weather patterns. These changes are now also occurring with increasing
unpredictability as well as with greater magnitude and frequency because of our
continually escalating temperature.

We are already experiencing major changes in rainfall and snowfall, with either too
much or too little at one time. These transitional conditions will remain unstable or
worsen until we have completed the transition to a new, more stable, climate
temperature equilibrium and range.

The long-term “good” news is that sooner or later when conditions are right, a
destabilized global climate will seek to establish equilibrium at some new level of
temperature and other climate quality states. A stable climate is generally always better
than an unstable climate when it comes to our overall global climate. But, any new
equilibrium we eventually arrive at because of increasing global warming may not be
friendly to us as humans.

Fueled by increasing population and human-caused global warming, we have already

radically increased the destabilization of our climate and our average global
temperature. The climate destabilization process is already increasing the rates of reef
collapse, desertification, deforestation, coastline loss, wildfires, droughts, superstorms,
floods, productive soil degradation, growing season changes, water pollution, and
species extinction.

It is possible (9) we may soon tip the climate into a new, fairly stable equilibrium quite
unlike the 12,000-year Ice Age cycles we have been experiencing for hundreds of
thousands of years. The very bad news is that billions of humans could soon be
suffering and dying because this climate destabilization will also destabilize our global
financial, political, agricultural, and social systems.

Now that you understand what global warming and climate destabilization are, there is a
simple one-click action you can take to help improve understanding of what we are
actually up against. Click here to learn more about why the language you use when
talking about global warming is critical. (10)

A positive perspective to counter-balance

all of this bad news
Eventually, we may be able to establish a new stable global average temperature and
climate.

The long-term, big-picture silver lining is that eventually, a destabilized global climate
will seek to establish some new dynamic equilibrium. This means that if we keep carbon
ppm and global warming below certain levels, we will eventually experience a new,
stable climate and temperature equilibrium. Stable is generally much better than
unstable when it comes to maintaining our global temperature, climate, and civilization
as we know it, but the new equilibrium might not be suitable for humans.

Despite the many types of challenging global warming consequences and past fossil
fuel reduction mistakes that we now face, we can still learn from their feedback, and we
can adapt and evolve to make life as good and as happy as is possible. No matter how
severe the coming global warming consequences might become, if we wisely play the
remaining cards that we have been dealt with, we can still achieve the best remaining
possible outcomes.