Earth at 40C
Earth at 40C
It would be very difficult to stop the earth continuing to heat up: it is simply too hot to live in many parts of the planet. Half of animals, plants and fungi become extinct, others in decline. People in every part of the world experience famine and floods.
This future, known as ‘hot house Earth’, could happen by around 2100 in the worst case. 4.7 billion people are exposed to deadly heat and humidity, making it too dangerous to work outside in large parts of the globe. Most glaciers at lower altitudes vanish. Europe is in constant drought, while droughts extend over the earth. Unpredictable rain and widespread serious flooding becomes commonplace. There are permanent food shortages across the planet. Sea levels rise by up to 19 metres, flooding all coastal cities. In total, up to 760 million people are affected by sea level rise. Whole island nations vanish under the sea. Highly acidic and hot oceans lead to a catastrophic loss of life - more than half of all marine species go extinct. Meanwhile half of land species face extinction.