Study: Decline in Cloud Cover Fuels Rising Global Temperatures

(MENAFN) An international team of scientists, including Australian experts, has uncovered a sharp decline in Earth's storm cloud regions, a phenomenon exacerbating global warming and pushing temperatures to unprecedented highs worldwide.

Analyzing 24 years of satellite observations, the research reveals that storm cloud areas are contracting by 1.5 to 3 percent every decade. This shift is attributed to climate change-driven factors like altered wind patterns and the expansion of tropical zones, which are nudging storm systems closer to the poles. The findings were highlighted in a recent announcement by the Australian Research Council (ARC) Center of Excellence for 21st Century Weather at Monash University in Melbourne.

The study, spearheaded by NASA in partnership with Australian researchers and published in Geophysical Research Letters, explains that with fewer clouds available to bounce sunlight back into space, the planet absorbs more solar radiation. This increase intensifies the greenhouse gas effect, accelerating global warming.

Christian Jakob, co-author of the study and director of the ARC Center, emphasizes that this loss of cloud cover is the principal reason for Earth’s growing solar energy intake. He states, "It's an important piece in the puzzle of understanding the extraordinary recent warming we observed, and a wake-up call for urgent climate action." Jakob also stresses the critical need for precise forecasts of cloud patterns and solar reflection to accurately project the pace and magnitude of future warming.

He adds, "It's not just long-term averages that matter, but how the day-to-day and season-to-season conditions we all rely on are changing," underscoring the urgency of addressing these rapidly evolving climate dynamics.

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