Glaciers melting fastest in South America

Glaciers are melting fastest in southern South America and Alaska and communities urgently need to adapt to the meltdown, according to a new UN report.

Sea level rises to exceed IPCC estimates: study

Sea levels may rise as much as 69cm through 2100 as water temperatures rise, glaciers melt in the Andes and Himalayas and ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica shed water, European scientists said.

Melting Arctic prompts race for routes, resources

When 16th and 17th century European explorers sailed west in pursuit of a trade route to Asia, their search for a Northwest Passage was foiled by Arctic ice.

Polar melt shakes up food chain

Tim Barlass Major changes to the food chain, weather and landscape of Antarctica have provided stark evidence of the impact of global warming, a report on a polar expedition has revealed.

A summer that refuses to throw in the towel

Peter Hannam This summer has been called everything from 'extreme' to 'angry' and for large swathes of the country those adjectives still apply.

Sea levels rising faster than UN projections: study

Sea levels are rising 60 per cent faster than UN projections, threatening low-lying areas from Miami to the Maldives, a study said on Wednesday.

Government starts review of draft IPCC working report

Peter Hannam The Australian government begins its review of the latest draft of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report, pledging ‘‘an open and comprehensive approach’’ as...

Off this planet: climate models work for Mars too

Computer models have accurately forecast conditions on Mars and are valid predictors of climate change on Earth, according to US and French astronomers.

Swiss bishop calls on power of prayer to bring back ice

Laura Spinney YOU'VE got to hand it to the Catholic Church - sometimes its methods work. In 1678, the inhabitants of Fiesch, in the Swiss canton of Valais, exasperated with the glaciers that loomed ever larger...

Sharp rise in sea levels to Australia's north: report

Andrew Darby Leading Australian scientists have firmed their view on the rate of sea-level rise, in the latest snapshot of this climate change problem.

97% of Greenland ice sheet melting

Ben Cubby The Greenland ice sheet is melting at an "unprecedented" rate, according to NASA satellite data that shows 97 per cent of the vast mass is undergoing some form of melting.

Stop crying poor and fix the mess

Ross Gittins I've needed all my optimistic instincts to avoid despair over the hash we're making of the need to take action against global warming, writes Ross Gittins.

World heading for 10th hottest year despite La Nina

This year will probably be the 10th warmest on record, and the hottest featuring the La Nina phenomenon that brings cooler waters to the surface of the Pacific Ocean, the World Meteorological...

Disaster looms as Himalayas heat up

It is strangely calming to watch the Imja glacier lake grow, as chunks of ice part from black cliffs and fall into the grey-green lake below.

Experts attack atlas's even greener land

A row is raging over The Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World, often considered the most prestigious and authoritative, over its depiction of a reduced ice sheet over Greenland.

Dramatic shrinking of Greenland glacier

A Welsh scientist has taken alarming photos of a Greenland glacier melting over the course of two years.

Summer's extra rain lowers sea levels

Juliet Eilperin The global sea level this northern summer is 0.6 of a centimetre lower than last summer, NASA scientists say, in contrast to the gradual ocean rises of recent years.

Climate change is set to shake the earth

A changing climate isn't just about floods, droughts and heatwaves. It brings erupting volcanoes and catastrophic earthquakes, says Bill McGuire in London.

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Gigantic Antarctic crack mapped for the first time

In a scene straight out of a science-fiction disaster movie, space agency Nasa has revealed what a vast crack across Antarctica looks like up close.