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UK’s climate is changing due to impact of global warming
According to the RT, Met Office researchers have warned that the impact of global warming is “already changing” the UK’s climate, with extreme weather, such as heatwaves and floods, set to hit the nation on an increasingly regular basis in the future.
The annual State of the UK Climate report, released on Thursday, found that 2020 was the third-warmest, fifth-wettest and eighth-sunniest year on record. It marked the first time a 12-month period has ever secured a top 10 place for all three measures.
Examining the data, the lead author of the report, Mike Kendon, warned that it shows “the climate is already changing here in the UK,” raising the risk of the nation being hit by extreme weather events on a more regular basis, as global temperatures to continue to rise.
The paper confirms the Met Office’s assessment that the country is becoming hotter, sunnier, and wetter due to the effects of climate change. All of the top 10 warmest years have occurred since 2002, and six of the wettest ever years since 1998.
The warning laid out within the State of the UK Climate report reiterates concerns raised previously by British scientists, who highlighted how rising greenhouse gas levels have already surpassed a point that allows “for a manageable future for humanity.”
“We had roads melting last year, rails start to buckle, electric cabling starts to buckle,” Liz Bentley, head of the Royal Meteorological Society, explained, suggesting that existing UK infrastructure will struggle to cope with future extreme weather events.
The State of the UK Climate is an annual report produced by the non-partisan Met Office, providing officials with an up-to-date assessment of the impact of climate change on Great Britain, expanding scientific understanding of trends, variations and extreme weather events.
The Met Office’s report comes after London suffered two destructive floods in only a few weeks, causing millions of pounds’ worth of damage to businesses, homes, and crucial infrastructure. Flash floods, which on both occasions came after a significant amount of rain fell within a short space of time, cut off individuals, leaving them without power and trapped in cars or properties surrounded by rising water levels.
In the wake of the London floods, Climate Central, a scientific news outlet, published a map that showed how central areas of the UK’s capital city could regularly be plunged underwater by 2030, as rising sea levels threaten to plague numerous boroughs.
Source: RT
Image source: David Mbiyu/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Image-RT
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- November 7, 2024
Amid growing anxiety among several European countries participating in NATO over Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte stated he looks forward to sitting down with Trump.
Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.
Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.
On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.
It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.
Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.
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