If we magically transformed the global economy overnight, and air pollution fell to near zero, we’d
- If we magically transformed the global economy overnight, and air pollution fell to near zero, we’d get:
- an immediate rise in global temperatures of between 0.5 and 1.1 degrees Celsius, according to the new study.
- (For reference: The climate has warmed about 1.2 degrees Celsius since the start of the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century.)
- The warming would be concentrated over the major cities of the northern hemisphere,
- close to where most aerosols are emitted.
- In the hardest hit parts of highly-urbanized East Asia, for example,
- the complete removal of aerosols would likely have a bigger effect than all other sources of climate change combined.
- Temperatures in the Arctic could jump as much as 4 degrees Celsius – a catastrophe that would shove the region further toward a permanently ice-free state.
- an immediate rise in global temperatures of between 0.5 and 1.1 degrees Celsius, according to the new study.