In a groundbreaking study, scientists from the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom have utilized advanced computer climate models to predict extreme climate phenomena in the distant future. Climate Extremes Future Supercontinent .
According to their research published in the journal Nature Geoscience, in about 250 million years, as global continents merge to form a massive supercontinent named “Pangea Ultima,” extreme climatic events will be prevalent. However, this new giant continent will likely be devoid of humans or mammals due to the unbearably hot and dry conditions making it nearly uninhabitable.
Researchers from the University of Bristol synthesized a report using computer-generated models that accurately forecast when humans could face extinction on our planet. Although these grim predictions won’t come to pass in the near future but rather in a distant 250 million years, they serve as a stark warning.
The team simulated temperature trends, wind patterns, rainfall, and humidity on the supercontinent. They also used models for tectonic plate movement, ocean chemistry, and biology to calculate carbon dioxide levels. They found that the formation of Pangea Ultima could lead not only to more frequent volcanic eruptions, releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and increasing the planet’s temperature, but also to a stronger sun emitting more energy, further raising Earth’s temperature.
The lead researchers, including Alexander Farnsworth, have suggested that the rising temperatures would create an environment devoid of food or water sources for mammals, effectively leading to their demise. CO2 levels could reach double the current levels, with the sun also expected to emit approximately 2.5% more radiation, potentially subjecting much of the Earth to temperatures ranging between 40 to 70 degrees Celsius.
Most of the planet will suffer scorching heat, leading to an uninhabitable environment. The report continues that average temperatures between 40 and 50 degrees Celsius, along with high daily temperatures and elevated humidity levels, will ultimately seal the fate of humans. Humans, along with many other species, would disappear from the planet due to their inability to dissipate this heat through sweating and regulating body temperature.
The report offers a strategy to avert this catastrophe: cease the use of fossil fuels. Professor Benjamin Mills from the University of Leeds, a co-expert on the report, argues that increased consumption of fossil fuels could hasten humanity’s end on Earth, potentially “much sooner than expected.”
Eunice Lo, co-author and climate change researcher at the University of Bristol, emphasizes the critical nature of not overlooking the current climate crisis resulting from human greenhouse gas emissions. While the planet may become uninhabitable in 250 million years, we are already experiencing extreme heat harmful to human health today. Therefore, achieving net-zero emissions as soon as possible is imperative.
This study was conducted using the most advanced climate models ever created by supercomputers to illustrate the climate changes that begin to manifest significantly when the world’s continents eventually merge to form a barren and uninhabitable supercontinent.
For more on this study, visit dzwatch.net. Climate Extremes Future Supercontinent .
