The Green Analysis

1.5 degrees Celsius, we have all heard it before; but why does this seemingly small temperature change have disastrous consequences for the world? The answer is feedback loops. It is such loops that keep the environment in stability, yet one small change can cause stability to be redefined along with the rest of the world.

What are Feedback Loops

Feedback loops have 2 types, positive and negative. Positive feedback loops are also called reinforcing loops because the action that starts the loop is intensified as a product which causes more intensification which causes more intensification etc. Negative loops on the other hand the product of negative loops is that the action that started the loop is weakened which causes more weakening etc. Feedback loops are found in many different fields, such as biology, chemistry, and astronomy.

Feedback Loops in Relation to Earth Science

Within the context of earth science feedback loops can affect a wide variety of factors, but they eventually in some way or another change the climate. Changing these feedback loops will cause changes in the climate which in turn can cause other feedback loops to change, starting a chain reaction of feedback loops altering the climate; essentially a positive feedback loop of feedback loops. Climate is the long-term weather patterns that a region experiences, and any substantial changes in the climate of an area can have vast impacts on society and the environment. An example of these effects could be in an agriculturally intense area, if the climate changes even a little bit the crop yield could plummet causing economic damage and potentially food shortages around the world.

Some Examples of Climate Feedback Loops

There are many examples of feedback loops in nature, the most powerful temperature-influencing feedback loop is the water vapor loop. It is a positive feedback loop, caused by an increase in temperature which causes more evaporation, water vapor is an influential greenhouse gas so more water vapor causes even higher temperatures which restarts the cycle. Some other notable feedback loops include the ice feedback loop, which is caused by melting ice which increases temperature allowing for more ice to melt. Another feedback loop is the negative oceanic carbon sink loop; for a long the the ocean has absorbed a large percentage of the CO2 from the atmosphere. But each day the ocean has less CO2 than ever, because it gets closer to not being able to take in any more CO2, increasing the percentage of CO2 that stays in the air each moment.

The Reasoning Behind the 1.5° Celsius

The reason why scientists are so concerned with the earth increasing over 1.5° Celsius, is because, at a certain point, some feedback loops will overpower all other ones the change will not be able to be reversed because they get so reinforced by the change that humans have caused on the environment. This is precisely what scientists are warning about with the 1.5° Celsius statements, saying that if the Earth warms up that much, it will reinforce positive feedback loops of temperature so much so that we will not be able to reverse it and very shortly after the surface of the Earth will become an inhospitable desert.