Breaking Down: Collapse Breaking Down: Collapse

Daily Episode 277 - We've hit 1.5c on the 4 year average

Nov 4, 2026 · 19m

Summary

This episode discusses a new UN-backed report warning that even temporary overshoots of the 1.5°C Paris Agreement target cause permanent damage to Earth's cryosphere, including glaciers and polar ice sheets. The host critiques the IPCC's use of long-term averages, arguing that current short-term data confirms we have already breached 1.5°C and are accelerating toward higher temperatures. The discussion highlights the irreversible consequences of warming, such as rapid ice sheet melting and weakening ocean circulation, while noting that current policies project a peak warming of nearly 3°C.

Topics discussed

Welcome to new listeners and Patreon support Sponsorships: Citizens Bank, Verizon Fios, and HERS Weekly schedule update and upcoming hiatus Critique of IPCC 20-year averages and current 1.5C breach UN report: Cryosphere faces permanent damage from overshoot The shift in climate narrative from future to present Sponsorships: Midi and Walden University Accelerating warming rates and desensitization to disasters Glacier loss, sea level rise, and ice sheet acceleration Emission targets and projected glacier mass loss AMOC weakening evidence and closing remarks Sponsorship: McDonald's Note to back-catalog listeners about daily episodes
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