UN-backed report says overshooting 1.5C would cause lasting ice damage

The short version

• A UN-backed report by 80 scientists says much of the damage from overshooting 1.5C would be permanent.[The Guardian]
• The report says the planet has warmed 1.3C and some overshoot is inevitable, so temperatures should return below 1C.[The Guardian]
• Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets are melting about six times faster than in the 1990s, according to the report.[The Guardian]
• Under current policies at 2.8C, glacier mass in several regions would fall below 10%, versus 20-35% at 1.5C.[The Guardian]

Key facts

• A UN-backed report by 80 scientists says overshooting the 1.5C target would cause permanent and widespread damage to icy regions.[The Guardian]
• The planet has warmed 1.3C since pre-industrial times, and scientists conclude some level of overshoot is inevitable.[The Guardian]
• The report was written by scientists brought together by the International Cryosphere Climate Initiative and the UN Environment Programme.[The Guardian]
• Lead author James Kirkham said Switzerland has lost 20% of its glacier ice in the last five years.[The Guardian]
• The ice sheets covering Greenland and Antarctica are melting about six times faster than in the 1990s, according to the report.[The Guardian]
• Current policies, projected to result in 2.8C of warming, would reduce glacier mass below 10% in the Rockies, Alps, Iceland and Scandinavia.[The Guardian]
• Limiting warming to 1.5C would leave about 20-35% of glacier mass in those regions, according to the report.[The Guardian]

Sources

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.

• Cryosphere faces permanent damage when world overshoots 1.5C, scientists warnThe Guardian - Environment