Temperatures Have Been Increasing Since The 1880s
The Claim
Global temperatures will increase by 1.5°C within the next two decades.
Emerging story
Social media users are sharing the main findings of a recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The claim is that the Earth’s temperatures are expected to increase by over 1.5 degrees celsius in the next 20 years. Users shared their concerns and called for urgent global action.
Misbar’s Analysis
The posts shared do not reflect the information found in the report in the correct context and therefore paints a wrong image and spurs misinformation. Climate change is happening at a much higher rate, with temperatures increasing at 0.08°C per decade since 1880 and then more than double at 0.18°C every decade since 1981. However, the increase of 1.5°C has not occurred exclusively in the past two decades, as described in the claims.
The highlighted excerpt taken from the IPCC press release as shown below, better explains how the report predicts that in two decades there will be a total rise of 1.5°C.
Furthermore, the below graph explains the temperature increase since 1880.
Twitter moments under the #Science hashtag had also released the misleading claim however they later corrected it to reflect the report more accurately, both can be seen below.
This rise in temperature is concerning since the 2015 Paris climate agreement was to keep the increases below 2°C and a target of capping global warming at 1.5°C. The IPCC report indicates that we are on track to exceeding that threshold if changes are not made. Weather changes are already occurring and causing fires and floods in different regions. However, given the findings, the Misbar team confirms the initial claims are misleading.
