Because of humans, the concentration of planet-warming carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is now 50% higher than before the industrial era and these gases are raising Earth’s temperature.
By now, few people question the reality that humans are altering Earth’s climate. The real question is: How quickly can we halt, even reverse, the damage?
Part of the answer to this question lies in the concept of “committed warming,” also known as “pipeline warming.”
It refers to future increases in global temperatures that will be caused by greenhouse gases that have already been emitted. In other words, if the clean energy transition happened overnight, how much warming would still ensue?