Is climate change real?

Yes, climate change is real. The overwhelming scientific evidence shows that Earth’s climate is warming at an unprecedented rate, primarily due to human activities, and this is causing widespread changes to the atmosphere, oceans, ice, and ecosystems.[1]

Scientific Consensus

There is near-universal agreement among climate scientists and major scientific organizations:

Key Evidence

Observations from multiple independent lines of evidence confirm the reality and human cause of current climate change:

Earth’s climate has changed naturally throughout its history (e.g., ice ages driven by orbital variations), but the current rate of warming is much faster—roughly 10 times the average post-ice-age rate—and cannot be explained by natural factors like solar output or volcanic activity alone. The pattern of warming (lower atmosphere and surface warming while the upper atmosphere cools) matches the expected fingerprint of greenhouse gases.[5]

Summary

Climate change is an established scientific fact, supported by direct measurements, paleoclimate records, satellite data, and physical understanding of the greenhouse effect (known since the 19th century). Human emissions of greenhouse gases are the dominant driver of the warming observed since the mid-20th century. Impacts are already occurring and will intensify with further emissions, though the severity depends on future actions. For the latest data and details, reliable sources include NASA’s Climate Change pages, NOAA, and IPCC reports.