Alas, those numbers do make a difference. See this Washington Post article on the Greenland glaciers, Greenland’s ice losses have septupled and are now in line with its highest sea-level scenario, scientists say.
A quote from the linked article states, “Around the planet, just 1 centimeter of sea-level rise brings another 6 million people into seasonal, annual floods,” said Andrew Shepherd, a University of Leeds professor who co-led the massive collaboration with NASA researcher Erik Ivins. I have to note that one United States senator in the past has stated that NASA should be studying space and not Earth. Seems like studying Earth has some direct application to our lives!
All of the above sounds distant and far away. It is not an immediate crisis that people are being confronted with every day.
However, I would note the incidences of disasters of different types, all with increased magnitude and destruction:
- Hurricanes & Tropical Storms
- Flooding
- Tornadoes
- Wildland Fires
- Drought
- Coastal Flooding
