NEW -- Copenhagen Diagnosis: Top Climate Scientists Update Findings Since 2007
This special report, written by 26 leading researchers and released ahead of the international climate change negotiations in Copenhagen, summarizes the science since the IPCC's 2007 assessment.Oct. 6: Arctic Sea Ice Extent for 2009
Is Third-Lowest on Record
Questions about weather and climate change?
The U.S. government releases scientific reports on global warming through the U.S. Global Change Research Program (formerly called the Climate Change Science Program). The consensus reports featured here, which represent a broad survey and assessment of the current state of the science, address the impacts of climate change on extreme weather and in turn the effects on human health and the economy. The fact sheets highlight the most significant impacts across the United States from the featured reports.
June 2009 | Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States
This report, which confirms previous evidence that global temperature increases in recent decades have been primarily human-induced, incorporates the latest information on rising temperatures and sea levels; increases in extreme weather events; and other climate-related phenomena. It is the first such report in almost a decade to break out those impacts by U.S. region and economic sector, and the first to do so in such great detail.
Report Resources
June 2008 | Weather and Climate Extremes in a Changing Climate
This study, led by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and issued in June by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program, finds human-induced warming has resulted in warmer average temperatures,increased precipitation and more frequent heat waves.
July 2008 | Analyses of the Effects of Global Change on Human Health and Welfare and Human Systems
This report from the Environmental Protection Agency, released in July, focuses on impacts of global climate change on the human health and welfare. Among other topics, it addresses food and water supplies, natural disasters, health issues and recreation.
May 2008 | Scientific Assessment of the Effects of Global Change on the United States
This National Science and Technology Council report, announced in May by the White House, looks at current trends in global change and projects major trends for the future. It analyzes the effects of these changes on the natural environment, agriculture, water resources, transportation and human health.