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Global climate change has already had observable effects on the environment. Glaciers have shrunk. Ice on rivers and lakes is breaking up earlier. Plant and animal ranges have shifted, and trees are flowering sooner.

Scientists have long predicted the effects of global climate change. These effects are now occurring. We are seeing a loss of sea ice, accelerated sea-level rise, and longer, more intense heat waves.

Scientists are confident that global temperatures will continue to rise (or go up). These rising temperatures are caused by greenhouse gases produced by human activities. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is a group of more than 1,300 scientists. It forecasts a temperature rise of 2.5 to 10 degrees Fahrenheit over the next century.

According to the IPCC, climate change will affect individual regions differently. Each geographic location (or region) will see changes at different times. Local social and environmental systems will also play a role. The systems will determine how a region can reduce or adapt to the effects of climate change.

The IPCC looked at the effects of an increase (or growth) in the global average temperature. They looked at an increase of 1 to 3 degrees Celsius above the average global temperature in the year 1990. They found that this increase will benefit some regions and harm others. Overall, they found that net annual costs will increase over time as global temperatures increase.

Future Effects

Some of the long-term effects of global climate change in the United States are as follows:

Change Will Continue Through This Century and Beyond

Global climate will continue to change over this century and beyond. The scale of climate change beyond the next few decades depends on two factors:

the amount of greenhouse gases emitted globally
how sensitive the Earth’s climate is to those emissions

Temperatures Will Continue to Rise

Human-caused warming is happening at the same time as natural changes in the climate. The temperature rise has not been, and will not be, uniform or smooth across the United States or over time.

Frost-free Season (and Growing Season) will Lengthen

image: a farmer working in a field

"Frost" is the word for ice that forms on the ground when the temperature is below freezing (0 degrees celsius) The "frost-free" season is the period between that last frost of spring and the first frost of fall. This is the time when most can grow. The length of the frost-free season (and the corresponding growing season) has been increasing in the U.S. since the 1980s. The largest increases are occurring in the western United States. This is affecting ecosystems and agriculture. Across the United States, the growing season is projected (or predicted) to continue to lengthen.

By the end of the century, frost-free seasons and growing seasons across the U.S. will probably increase by a month or more. In the western U.S., the frost-free season will increase by more than eight weeks. The increases will be considerably smaller if heat-trapping gas emissions are reduced.

Changes in Precipitation Patterns

Average U.S. precipitation has increased since 1900. Some areas have had increases of more than the national average, and some areas have had decreases. More winter and spring precipitation is projected (or predicted) for the northern United States. Less winter and spring precipitation is projected for the Southwest, over this century.

More Droughts and Heat Waves

image: dry, cracked soil

Heatwaves will become more intense (or strong), and cold waves less intense across the U.S. In the Southwest, droughts will become more intense.

Summer temperatures will continue to rise. There will be less moisture (or water) in the soil. This will make heat waves worse. By the end of this century, the extreme days that used to come only once in 20 years will occur every two or three years over most of the nation.

Hurricanes Will Become Stronger and More Intense

a truck drives on a beach during a storm. wind blows the trees sideways. water splashes the side of the truck

The intensity, frequency, and duration (or length) of the North Atlantic hurricane have all increased since the early 1980s. The frequency of the strongest (Category 4 and 5) hurricanes has also increased. Storm intensity and rainfall rates will increase as the climate continues to warm.

Sea Level Will Rise 1-8 feet by the year 2100 Global sea level has risen by about 8 inches since reliable record-keeping began in 1880. It is projected to rise another 1 to 8 feet by 2100. This is the result of added water from melting land ice and the expansion (or growing size) of seawater as it warms. In the next several 10 to 30 years, storm surges, high tides, and rising sea levels will increase flooding in many regions.

Sea levels will continue to rise past 2100. The oceans take a very long time to respond to warmer conditions at the Earth’s surface. Ocean waters will continue to warm, and sea levels will continue to rise for many centuries.

Arctic Likely to Become Ice-Free

image: icebergs float in the sea. they are melting under the hot sun

The Arctic Ocean is expected to become essentially ice free in summer before mid-century.

Source: © 2021 by FHI 360. "Intermediate Reading Practice: The Effects of Climate Change (Optional) for the Online Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State with funding provided by the U.S. government and administered by FHI 360. This work is an adaptation of "The Effects of Climate Change", by NASA available under Public Domain / U.S. Government Works. Adapted content is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, except where noted. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Image Credits:

Effects of Climate Change This work is a derivative of Image by blende12 via Pixabay under Pixabay license. This derivative is licensed CC BY by FHI 360 for the Online Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State with funding provided by the United States government and administered by FHI 360.
Farmer: Image by nicolagiordano via Pixabay under Pixabay license.
Drought: Image by jodylehigh via Pixabay under Pixabay license.
Hurricane: Image by 12019 / 10259 via Pixabay under Pixabay license.
Melting Icebergs: Image by Free-Photos/9088 via Pixabay under Pixabay license.