climate change

Observations and modeling in the local, regional and global climate across time using data collected from sea level changes, glacial changes, sea and air temperature changes and other changes to show a pattern of change in the climate. According to NASA in 2024:

Changes observed in Earth’s climate since the mid-20th century are driven by human activities, particularly fossil fuel burning, which increases heat-trapping greenhouse gas levels in Earth’s atmosphere, raising Earth’s average surface temperature. Natural processes, which have been overwhelmed by human activities, can also contribute to climate change, including internal variability (e.g., cyclical ocean patterns like El Niño, La Niña and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation) and external forcings (e.g., volcanic activity, changes in the Sun’s energy output, variations in Earth’s orbit).

Although the terms global warming and climate change are often used interchangeably, global warming is actually an aspect of climate change, per NASA, and the terms are not interchangeable.

Please note: Due to concerns of misinformation or removal of terms like climate change and global warming by the Trump administration from all government websites, the links are archived pages.

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