Is climate change real?

Yes

Yes, climate change is real. The Earth is warming at an unprecedented rate in modern human history, driven primarily by human activities, according to overwhelming scientific evidence and consensus.[1]

Key Evidence

Multiple independent lines of evidence confirm planetary-scale warming:

•Rising global temperatures: Earth’s average surface temperature has increased by roughly 1.1–1.5°C (about 2–2.7°F) since the late 19th century/pre-industrial period (1850–1900). Most of this warming has occurred since the mid-20th century. Recent decades have been the warmest on record; 2023 and 2024 were among the hottest years, with 2024 confirmed by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) as about 1.55°C above pre-industrial levels (the first calendar year likely exceeding 1.5°C). Each of the last several decades has been warmer than the previous ones.[2]

•Other physical indicators: Arctic sea ice and ice sheets (Greenland and Antarctica) are shrinking; glaciers are retreating; ocean heat content is rising; sea levels are rising due to thermal expansion and meltwater; snow cover is decreasing in many areas; and the lower atmosphere is warming while the stratosphere cools (a fingerprint of greenhouse gas forcing).[1]

•Paleoclimate context: Current warming is occurring roughly 10 times faster than the average rate after past ice ages. CO₂ levels are higher than at any point in at least the last 800,000 years (from ice core data), rising about 250 times faster than natural post-ice-age increases due to human emissions.[1]

•Biological and ecological signs: Species are shifting poleward or to higher elevations; growing seasons are changing; and there are increases in extreme heat, heavy precipitation in some regions, droughts, and wildfire risk in others.

These observations come from thermometers, satellites, ocean buoys, ice cores, tree rings, and other proxies, cross-checked by agencies including NASA, NOAA, the UK Met Office, and others. Natural factors (solar variability, volcanoes, orbital cycles) cannot explain the recent rapid warming; in fact, solar output has been relatively stable or slightly declining while temperatures rose.[3]

Human Cause and Scientific Consensus

The primary driver is the increase in greenhouse gases (especially CO₂ from burning fossil fuels, plus methane and nitrous oxide from agriculture and other sources) since the Industrial Revolution. These gases trap heat. The IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), which assesses the full body of peer-reviewed science, states it is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean, and land. Humans are responsible for essentially all of the observed warming over the industrial era.[4]

•Surveys and analyses of the scientific literature show 97%+ (often >99%) of climate scientists and peer-reviewed papers agree that warming is real and mostly human-caused. A 2021 review of ~88,000 studies found >99.9% agreement.[5]

•Virtually every major scientific organization worldwide (NASA, NOAA, Royal Society, National Academies, AAAS, and hundreds of others) endorses this position.[4]

Climate has always varied naturally, but the current changes are distinct in speed, global coherence, and cause. Uncertainty exists in exact future projections, regional details, and some feedbacks, but the core facts—that the climate is warming and humans are the main cause—are established with very high confidence.

For primary sources, see NASA’s climate pages, the IPCC AR6 reports (especially the Physical Science Basis), the Royal Society’s “Climate Change: Evidence & Causes,” and WMO state-of-the-climate assessments. The evidence has only strengthened over decades of observation and research.

Citations (5)

1nasa.govGovernment
https://science.nasa.gov/climate-change/evidence/
Backs: “The Earth is warming at an unprecedented rate in modern human history, driven primarily by human activities, according to overwhelming scientific evidence and consensus.”
evidence, article, points to yes. Claim: Earth is warming unprecedentedly, driven by human activity; ice, ocean, sea level indicators and paleoclimate comparisons confirm planetary-scale warming.
2wmo.intGovernment
https://wmo.int/news/media-centre/wmo-confirms-2024-warmest-year-record-about-155degc-above-pre-industrial-level
Backs: “Each of the last several decades has been warmer than the previous ones.”
statistic, article, points to yes. Claim: WMO confirmed 2024 as about 1.55°C above pre-industrial levels, the first calendar year likely exceeding 1.5°C.
3nasa.govGovernment
https://science.nasa.gov/climate-change/causes/
Backs: “Natural factors (solar variability, volcanoes, orbital cycles) cannot explain the recent rapid warming; in fact, solar output has been relatively stable or slightly declining while temperatures rose.”
evidence, article, points to yes. Claim: Natural factors like solar variability cannot explain recent rapid warming; solar output has been stable or slightly declining.
4nasa.govGovernment
https://science.nasa.gov/climate-change/scientific-consensus/?mod=article_inline
Backs: “Humans are responsible for essentially all of the observed warming over the industrial era.”
attribution, article, points to yes. Claim: IPCC says human influence on warming is unequivocal; virtually every major scientific organization endorses the consensus.
5sciencedaily.comNews and mediaquality 0.85
https://sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/10/211019082702.htm
Backs: “Surveys and analyses of the scientific literature show 97%+ (often >99%) of climate scientists and peer-reviewed papers agree that warming is real and mostly human-caused. A 2021 review of ~88,000 studies found >99.9% agreement.”
statistic, article, points to yes. Claim: A 2021 review of about 88,000 studies found over 99.9% agreement that warming is real and human-caused.