The Industrial Revolution kick-started global warming much earlier than we realised

Authors

Helen V. McGregor, University of WollongongFollow
Joelle Gergis, University of Melbourne
Nerilie J. Abram, Australian National UniversityFollow
Steven J. Phipps, University of TasmaniaFollow

RIS ID

109229

Publication Details

McGregor, H., Gergis, J., Abram, N. & Phipps, S. (2016). The Industrial Revolution kick-started global warming much earlier than we realised. The Conversation, 25 August 1-4.

Link to publisher version (URL)

The Conversation

Abstract

In the early days of the Industrial Revolution, no one would have thought that their burning of fossil fuels would have an almost immediate effect on the climate. But our new study, published today in Nature, reveals that warming in some regions actually began as early as the 1830s. That is much earlier than previously thought, so our discovery redefines our understanding of when human activity began to influence our climate.