There are indications of changes in precipitation patterns over Latin America and the Caribbean during the last decades. In Argentina, for example, precipitation increases have been observed over Buenos Aires over the last hundred years. This can be seen as an indication of climate change.

Compares the total amounts of CO2 emissions from the three main regions within Latin America and the Caribbean. CO2 emissions in the region vary considerably. The highest emissions come from South America, while the lowest and relatively more stable emissions come from the Caribbean. Between 1990 and 2000, CO2 emissions from South America increased by more than 40%, mainly because of increased emissions from transportation, industry and electri...

Time series 1995-200 with ENSO index vs glacier.

Large tropical hydropower reservoirs in Latin America may have a potential adverse impact on the climatic system through releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Submerging large areas of land and tropical vegetation under water and fluctuations in water level promote physical-chemical processes that decompose the organic matter and generate methane and carbon dioxide emissions. In the initial years of operation, emission levels are especi...

Emissions of greenhouse gases are on the increase around the world, contributing to man-made global warming and climate change. This graphic displays greenhouse gas emissions per capita in Latin America and the Caribbean compared to countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

In Brazil there are noticeable benefits for using alcohol as a fuel over traditional gasoline. This graphic illustrates the reduction in use of fossil fuels (gasoline) in favor of ethanol/alcohol. This has lead to a reduction in emissions of CO2 emissions, as illustrated by the bottom chart.

Approximately 12 % of the world’s energy supply comes from renewable energy sources (biomass, waste and other renewables, excluding hydropower). The average renewable share in Latin America is higher than the world average,. But even if the energy supply from renewables will increase in Latin America, the percentage share of renewables of total energy supply is projected to decrease in the years to come. (World Energy Outlook 2004). Latin Ameri...

Atmospheric CO2 has increased from a pre-industrial concentration of about 280 ppmv to about 367 ppmv at present (ppmv= parts per million by volume). CO2 concentration data from before 1958 are from ice core measurements taken in Antarctica and from 1958 onwards are from the Mauna Loa measurement site. The smooth curve is based on a hundred year running mean. It is evident that the rapid increase in CO2 concentrations has been occurring since the...

Today, the great pressure on water resources is rising human populations, particularly growing concentrations in urban areas. This diagram shows the impact of expected population growth on water usage by 2025, based on the UN mid-range population projection. It uses the current rate of water use per person without taking into account possible increases in water use due to economic growth or improvements in water use efficiency. The regions most v...

A planet's climate is decided by its mass, its distance from the sun and the composition of its atmosphere. Mars is too small to keep a thick atmosphere. Its atmosphere consists mainly of carbon dioxide, but the atmosphere is very thin. The atmosphere of the Earth is a hundred times thicker.

A warmer climate increases occasions of vector borne tropical diseases. This figure depicts weeks of potential dengue transmission under current temperature and 2°C and 4 °C warming. Presence of dengue virus, mosquito vector, and exposed human populations are required for disease transmission.

Current and projected Ranges of Beech Trees in the US. A warmer climate may have significant effect on the forests. Decidous forests will probably move northwards and to higher altitudes, replacing coniferous forests in many areas. Some tree species will probably be replaced altogether, jeopardizing biological diversity in several places.

Shows the sources for greenhouse gases, contributing to climate change, and their relative radiative forcing effect (radiative forcing is the change in the balance between radiation coming into the atmosphere and radiation going out)

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Convention is the foundation of global efforts to combat global warming. Opened for signature in 1992 at the Rio Earth Summit, its ultimate objective is the 'stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic human-induced interference with the climate system. The Convention's supreme body is the Conference of the Parties (COP)...

Precipitation has increased over land at high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, especially during the cold season. Decrease in precipitation occurred in steps after the 1960s over the subtropics and the tropics from Africa to Indonesia.

The projection of future climate change depends partly on the assumptions made about future emissions of greenhouse gases and aerosol precursors and the proportion of emissions remaining in the atmosphere.

The summer of 2007 brought another heat wave to the Balkans, with widespread forest fires. The extent of burnt forest may differ a great deal from one year to the next, but it is quite clear that over the past 20 years, the frequency of forest fires has gradually increased in southeast Europe.

The synthesis of 23 climate models shows a decline in rainfall between 1980-1999 and 2080-2099 under mid- range (A1B) global greenhouse gas emissions scenarios. The dry season rainfall is particularly important (winter in north and summer in central and southern Amazonia).

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Carbon stocks in forest areas comprise carbon in living and dead organic matter both above and below ground including trees, the understorey, dead wood, litter and soil. On a global scale, vegetation and soils are estimated to trap 2.6 gigatonnes (Gt) of carbon annually. Yet there are still many uncertainties about the workings of the carbon cycle: the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimates that the amount of carbon...