Does looking at average temperatures downplay the dangers?published at 13:46 British Summer Time 27 July 2023

13:46 BST 27 July 2023

Esme Stallard
Climate reporter

Phil Hibberd says putting the focus on average temperatures downplays the dangers, and maximum temperatures are what kill people.

This was a point made by Mike Kendon, author of the latest Met Office report on the state of the UK’s climate released today.

In an interview with the BBC he said: “The extremes of temperature are changing faster than the average temperature.

"This is very significant because it's these extremes of temperature that caused the most significant impacts.

“What we are seeing here is symptomatic, it’s part of a pattern of what is going to happen with more high temperature extremes.. More impacts like we're seeing in Europe from these wildfires, and it really brings home to us that climate change is happening.”

Image source, .

How can experts predict conditions in 2100?published at 13:40 British Summer Time 27 July 2023

13:40 BST 27 July 2023

Esme Stallard
Climate reporter

Martin Auger in Birmingham asks: Why does the Met Office feel it can predict conditions in 2100 when it is unable to accurately forecast tomorrow’s weather?

What the Met Office and other climate researchers predict in 2100 is not the exact day-to day-weather conditions such as whether it is going to rain at 5:30pm at Birmingham New Street when you’re due to catch your train home from work.

What they are predicting is the chance of reaching a specific outcome, for example 40C in the UK, not when specifically it will occur or where. So their latest report published today says hot years like 2022 will be the average by 2060, if carbon emissions continue as expected.

Climate is the average weather in a place over many years. Climate change is a shift in those average conditions.

This shift has been largely driven by the emissions of greenhouse gases - such as carbon dioxide - which trap the sun’s heat, effectively heating the earth.

The increased emission of these greenhouse gases over the past century or so means that the world is warming faster than at any point in recorded history.

In 2015, almost 200 countries pledged to try to reduce emissions so that we are no longer adding to the total amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere by 2050 - this is referred to as net zero.

The aim is to reduce the warming of the planet and keep the average temperature rise to 1.5C by the end of the century.

Scientists say limiting temperature rise to 1.5C is crucial to avoid the most dangerous impacts of climate change.

Want to learn more? Read our simple guide to climate change.

Is population growth fuelling climate change?published at 13:32 British Summer Time 27 July 2023

13:32 BST 27 July 2023

Esme Stallard
Climate reporter

Our first question comes from T Burrow in Yorkshire, who asks about the role of human populations in driving climate change, particularly looking at "consumerist demands" in industrialised parts of the world.

Every person on the planet has a carbon footprint - these are the greenhouse gas emissions they produce which contribute to climate change.

But the amount of emissions vary massively depending on where you live and your lifestyle. So simply reducing populations doesn’t solve the issue if consumption remains high.

In fact, the majority of the world’s emissions are produced by a relatively small, wealthy group of individuals.

In the UK, each person produces about 7.1 tonnes of CO2 each year, whereas in India it’s less than 2 tonnes each.

Reducing emissions through switching to renewable energy, moving away from diesel and petrol cars and changing how we heat homes can enable countries to lower their emissions without changing their population structures.

The July heatwaves across Europe and the US would have been"virtually impossible" without human-induced climate change, according to a scientific study published this week., external

Climate change meant the heatwave in southern Europe was 2.5C hotter, and almost all societies are unprepared, experts warn.

"Heat is among the deadliest types of disaster," says Julie Arrighi from the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre, and also one of the report authors.

Countries must build heat-resistant homes, create"cool centres" for people to find shelter, and find ways to cool cities including planting more trees, she says.

You can read more here

Image source, EPA

Ask us your climate change questionspublished at 13:24 British Summer Time 27 July 2023

13:24 BST 27 July 2023

Climate change is complicated, and with all the scary headlines, you'd be forgiven for feeling a little overwhelmed. We're here to help, and will be answering your questions for the next few hours.

Send them in via:

• Email: yourquestions@bbc.co.uk
• WhatsApp: +44 7756 165803
• Tweet: @BBC_HaveYourSay, external
• Please read our terms & conditions and privacy policy

In some cases a selection of your comments and questions will be published, displaying your name and location as you provide it unless you state otherwise. Your contact details will never be published.

Here's a little recap of just some of thing that scientists have noted this year. You can read more about why some scientists think Earth is now in uncharted territory here.

1. Hottest day on record. The world experienced its hottest day ever recorded in July, breaking the previous record set in 2016.

2. Hottest June on record globally. The average global temperature in June this year was 1.47C above the typical June in the pre-industrial period.

3. Extreme marine heatwaves. The average global ocean temperature has smashed records for May, June and July. For example, temperatures off the west coast of Ireland were between 4C and 5C above average in June.

4. Record-low Antarctic sea-ice. The area covered by sea-ice in the Antarctic is at record lows for July. There is an area around 10 times the size of the UK missing, external, compared with the 1981-2010 average.

Image source, .

Heather Sharp
Live reporter

Good afternoon. With extreme heat in southern Europe, the US and China, as well as wildfires in Greece and Canada, and the world's hottest day ever recorded in July, climate change has rarely been out of the headlines recently.

One scientist warned the BBC last week that the Earth is in “uncharted territory" now due to global warming from burning fossil fuels, as well as heat from the warming natural weather system El Niño.

And as we’re reporting today, the UK’s Met Office says the record-breaking UK heat experienced in 2022 will be regarded as a cool year by the end of this century.

We’ve been hearing from you, our readers - with questions about things like how such predictions can be made, what can be done to tackle rising emissions and about why this summer in the UK feels a bit wet and chilly.

I’m here in London with our climate reporter Esme Stallard - we’ll be looking at what’s been going on, and she’ll be answering your questions.

Stay with us, and let us know what you'd like to know.