Arctic cyclone, as captured by a NASA satellite on July 28, 2020.
A Brief Primer on Global Warming
Revised March 8, 2025
Presentation Files
- Script: PDF (122 KB)
- Slide decks with embedded videos: Keynote (691.4 MB) — PowerPoint (685.2 MB)
- Slide decks without embedded videos: Keynote (91.6 MB) — PowerPoint (79.8 MB) — Acrobat (85.3 MB)
- Video 1 (Slide 12), NASA Scientific Visualization Studio, 2025, Temperature Measurement Stations, accessible via https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4961/
- Video 2 (Slide 23), NASA Scientific Visualization Studio, 2024, Twelve consecutive months of global surface temperature records: 1880 to 2023: accessible via https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5311/
- Video 3 (Slide 25), NASA Scientific Visualization Studio, 2025, 2024 is the Warmest Year on Record: accessible via https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14743/
- Video 4 (Slide 79), NASA Scientific Visualization Studio, 2024, GRACE and GRACE-FO Observations of Polar Land Ice Mass Changes: accessible via https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/31166/
- Video 5 (Slide 81), Cronin, V.S., 2021, Does raising the temperature of water change its volume? Video for Pearson, Laboratory Manual in Physical Geology [12th edition], accessible via https://qrgo.page.link/Hd51t
- Video 6 (Slide 82), Cronin, V.S., 2021, Does sea level change when floating sea ice and icebergs melt? Video for Pearson, Laboratory Manual in Physical Geology [12th edition], accessible via https://qrgo.page.link/Mr42z
- Video 7 (Slide 83), Cronin, V.S., 2021, Does sea level change when continental ice sheets and glaciers melt? Video for Pearson, Laboratory Manual in Physical Geology [12th edition], accessible via https://qrgo.page.link/bhXHa
- Cronin, V.S., and Carpenter, M., 2021, Earth's Dynamic Climate {Chapter 17] in Cronin, V.S., and Tasa, D., 2021, Laboratory Manual in Physical Geology [12th edition]: New York, Pearson Higher Education, p. 431-461, ISBN-13: 978-0-13-583697-2
Some Suggested Reading/Resources
- Mann, M., 2023, Our Fragile Moment — How lessons from Earth's past can help us survive the climate crisis: New York, Public Affairs, Hachette Book Group, 306 p., ISBN-13: 978-1-5417-0289-9
- Johnson, A.E., and Wilkinson, K.K., [editors], 2020, All We Can Save — Truth, courage, and solutions for the climate crisis: New York, One World, Penguin Random House LLC, 422 p., ISBN 978-0-593-23708-3.
- Weart, S., 2024, The Discovery of Global Warming — A hypertext history of how scientists came to (partly) understand the problem of climate change: American Institute of Physics, https://history.aip.org/climate/index.htm
- PBS News, 2024, Climate change is shifting plant growth zones. Here's what to know for your garden this year: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/climate-change-is-shifting-plant-growth-zones-heres-what-to-know-for-your-garden-this-year
- Rich, N., and Steinmetz, G. 2018,
Losing Earth: The Decade We Almost Stopped Climate Change: New York Times Magazine
Some Video Resources from NASA
Internet Resources
- American Chemical Society, Climate Science Toolkit: https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/climatescience.html
- American Institue of Physics, History of how scientists came to (partly) understand the problem of climate change by Spencer Weart: https://history.aip.org/climate
- American Meteorological Society, State of the Climate: https://www.ametsoc.org/index.cfm/ams/publications/bulletin-of-the-american-meteorological-society-bams/state-of-the-climate/
- Climate Central, accessed 2023, The Coastal Risk Screening Tool: coastal.climatecentral.org
- NASA's Earth Observatory: www.earthobservatory.nasa.gov
- NASA Climate Change portal: climate.nasa.gov
- NASA information about orbital satellites that contribute to our understanding of global sea level (Jason 1, Jason 2, Jason 3, ICESat, ICESat-2, GRACE, GRACE-FO, Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich, SWOT, NASA-ISRO-SAR, Sentinel-6b): sealevel.nasa.gov/data/missions
- NASA information about the carbon cycle: www.earthobservatory.nasa.gov/features/CarbonCycle
- NASA information about sea-level rise: sealevel.nasa.gov/understanding-sea-level/key-indicators/global-mean-sea-level/200
- NASA GISS Surface Temperature Analysis (GISTEMP), version 4 from NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies: data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/
- NOAA Climate portal: www.noaa.gov/climate
- NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory at the Mauna Loa Observatory: www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/obop/mlo/
- NOAA data from the Mauna Loa Observatory showing trends in atmospheric CO2: www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/ccgg/trends/data.html
- NOAAA, accessed 2023, The Sea Level Rise Viewer: coast.noaa.gov/slr/#
- NOAA sea level trends: tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/sltrends/sltrends.html
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography information about the Argo Program: www.argo.ucsd.edu
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography CO2 portal: scrippsco2.ucsd.edu
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography atmospheric monitoring laboratory at the Mauna Loa Observatory: scripps.ucsd.edu/programs/keelingcurve/ and https://scrippsco2.ucsd.edu
- UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change: www.ipcc.ch
- UN Environment Programme, Emissions Gap Report 2019: www.unenvironment.org/resources/emissions-gap-report-2019
- USGS Sea Level Rise Data Viewer
explanation usgs.maps.arcgis.com/apps/Cascade/index.html?appid=668f6dc7014d45228c993302d3eab2f5
data viewer geoport.usgs.esipfed.org/terriaslc/
- U.S. Global Change Research Program: www.globalchange.gov and its library of online reports at https://globalchange.gov/reports
- U.S. Global Change Research Program, Fifth National Climate Assessment: https://nca2023.globalchange.gov
- U.S. Global Change Research Program, Fourth National Climate Assessment, Executive Summary, Volume 1: science2017.globalchange.gov/chapter/executive-summary
- U.S. Global Change Research Program, Fourth National Climate Assessment, Volume 1: science2017.globalchange.gov
- U.S. Global Change Research Program, Fourth National Climate Assessment, Summary Findings, Volume 2: nca2018.globalchange.gov/#sf-1
- U.S. Global Change Research Program, Fourth National Climate Assessment, Volume 2: nca2018.globalchange.gov
Books
- Alley, Richard B., 2000, The Two-Mile Time Machine -- Ice Cores, Abrupt Climate Change, and Our Future: Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 239 p.
- Bolin, B., 2007, A History of the Science and Politics of Climate Change -- The Role of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 277 p.
- Broeker, W., 2010, The Great Ocean Conveyor -- Discovering the Trigger for Abrupt Climate Change: Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 154 p.
- Charney, J.G., Study Group Chairman, 1979, Carbon Dioxide and Climate: A Scientific Assessment: Washington DC, National Academies Press, https://doi.org/10.17226/12181, https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/12181/carbon-dioxide-and-climate-a-scientific-assessment
- Cronin, T.M., 2009, Paleoclimates -- Understanding Climate Change Past and Present: Columbia University Press, New York, 441 p.
- Fagan, B., 2000, The Little Ice Age -- How Climate Made History 1300-1850: Basic Books, New York, 246 p.
- Fagan, B., 2004, The Long Summer -- How Climate Changed Civilization: Basic Books, New York, 284 p.
- Gautier, C., 2008, Oil, Water, and Climate -- An Introduction: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 366 p.
- Mann, M.E., and Kump, L.R., 2009, Dire Predictions -- Understanding Global Warming: DK Publishing, New York, 208 p.
- Mims, F.E., III, 2012, Hawai'i's Mauna Loa Observatory -- Fifty Years of Monitoring the Atmosphere: University of Hawai'i Press, Honolulu, 461 p.
- Murray-Wallace, C.V., and Woodroffe, C.D., 2014, Quaternary Sea-Level Changes -- A Global Perspective: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 484 p.
- Neuendorf, K.K.E., Mehl, J.P., Jr., and Jackson, J.A., 2011, Glossary of Geology [5th edition, revised]: Alexandria, Virginia, American Geosciences Institute, 800 pp.
- Nierenberg, W.A., Committee Chairman, 1983, Changing Climate -- Report of the Carbon Dioxide Assessment Committee: Washington, D.C., National Academy Press, doi 10.17226/18714, https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/18714/changing-climate-report-of-the-carbon-dioxide-assessment-committee
- Oreskes, N., and Conway, E.M., 2014, The Collapse of Western Civilization -- A View from the Future: Columbia University Press, New York, 92 p.
- Richter, B., 2010, Beyond Smoke and Mirrors--Climate Change and Energy in the 21st Century: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 226 p.
- Ruddiman, W.F., 2014, Earth's Climate, Past and Future [3rd edition]: W.H. Freeman & Co., New York, 445 p.
- Ruddiman, W.F., 2005, Plows, Plagues & Petroleum--How Humans Took Control of Climate: Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 202 p.
- Sverdrup, H.U., Johnson, M.W., and Fleming, R.H., 1942, The Oceans--Their Physics, Chemistry, and General Biology: Prentice-Hall, New York, 1087 p., https://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=kt167nb66r
- Weart, S.R., 2008, The Discovery of Global Warming: Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 230 p.
Published Papers or Book Chapters
- Bazin, L., and 21 others, 2013, An optimized multi-proxy, multi-site Antarctic ice and gas orbital chronology (AICC2012) 120-800 ka: Climates of the Past, v. 9, p. 1715-1731, doi:10.5194/cp-9-1715-2013.
- Camuffo, D., and Bertolin, C., 2012, The earliest temperature observations in the world — the Medici Network (1654-1670): Climatic Change, v. 111, p. 335-363, accessible via https://www.academia.edu/7819198/The_earliest_temperature_observations_in_the_world_the_Medici_Network_1654_1670_
- Chambers, D.P., Cazenave, A., Champollion, N., Dieng, H., Llovel, W., Forsberg, R., von Schuckmann, K., and Wada, Y., 2017, Evaluation of the Global Mean Sea Level Budget between 1993 and 2014: Surveys of Geophysics, v. 38, p. 309-327, doi:10.1007/s10712-016-9381-3.
- Graven, H., Keeling, R.F., and Rogelj, J., 2020, Changes to Carbon Isotopes in Atmospheric CO2 Over the Industrial Era and Into the Future: Global Biogeochemical Cycles, v. 34, no. 11, accessible via https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2019GB006170
- Hansen, J., Sato, M., Russell, G., and Kharecha, P, 2013, Climate sensitivity, sea level and atmospheric carbon dioxide: Philosophical Transactions of The Royal Society A, v. 371: 2012.0294, http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsta.2012.0294.
- Jouzel, J., and 31 others, 2007, Orbital and millennial Antarctic climate variability over the past 800,000 years: Science, v. 317, p. 793-796, doi:10.1126/science.1141038.
- Keeling, C.D., Piper, S.C., Bacastow, R.B., Wahlen, M., Whorf, T.P., Heimann, M., and H. A. Meijer, H.A., 2005, Atmospheric CO2 and 13CO2 exchange with the terrestrial biosphere and oceans from 1978 to 2000: observations and carbon cycle implications, in Ehleringer, J.R., Cerling, T.E., and Dearing, M.D., [eds], A History of Atmospheric CO2 and Its Effects on Plants, Animals, and Ecosystems: Springer Verlag, New York, p. 83-113.
- Kreemer, C., Hammond, W.C., and Blewitt, G., 2018, A robust estimation of the 3-D intraplate deformation of the North American plate from GPS: Journal of Geophysical Research—Solid Earth, v. 123, p. 4388-4412, https://doi.org/10.1029/ 2017JB015257.
- Laskar, J., Fienga, A., Gastineau, M., and Manche, H., 2011, La2010 -- A new orbital solution for the long-term motion of the Earth: Astronomy and Astrophysics, v. 532, A89.
- Laskar, J., Robutel, P., Joutel, F., Gastineau, M., Correia, A.C.M., and Levrard, B., 2004, A long term numerical solution for the insolation quantities of the Earth: Astronomy and Astrophysics, v. 428, p. 261-285, doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20041335.
- Lenssen, N., Schmidt, G., Hansen, J., Menne. M., Persin, A., Ruedy, R., and Zyss, D., 2019, Improvements in the GISTEMP uncertainty model: Journal of Geophysical Research - Atmospheres, v. 124, no. 12, p. 6307-6326, doi:10.1029/2018JD029522.
- Lisiecki, L.E., and Raymo, M.E., 2005, A Pliocene-Pleistocene stack of 57 globally distributed benthic δ18O records: Paleoceanography, v. 20, PA1003, doi:10.1029/2004PA001071.
- Loulergue, L., and 9 others, 2008, Orbital and millennial-scale features of atmospheric CH4 over the past 800,000 years: Nature, v. 453, p. 383-386, doi:10.1038/nature06950.
- Lüthi, D., and 10 others, 2008, High-resolution carbon dioxide concentration record 650,000-800,000 years before present: Nature, v. 453, p. 379-382, 15 May 2008.
- MacFarling Meure, C., Etheridge, D., Trudinger, C., Steele, P., Langenfelds, R., van Ommen, T., Smith, A., and Elkins, J., 2006: The Law Dome CO2, CH4 and N2O Ice Core Records Extended to 2000 years BP: Geophysical Research Letters, vol. 33(14), L14810 10.1029/2006GL026152.
- Marcott, S.A., Shakun, J.D., Clark, P.U., and Mix, A.C., 2013, A reconstruction of regional and global temperature for the past 11,300 years: Science, v. 339, p. 1198-1201, doi:10.1126/science.1228026. Supplemental material accessible via https://science.sciencemag.org/content/suppl/2013/03/07/339.6124.1198.DC1
- Morlighem, M., and 31 others, 2017, BedMachine v3 -- Complete bed topography and ocean bathymetry mapping of Greenland from multibeam echo sounding combined with mass conservation: Geophysical Research Letters, v. 44, p. 11,051–11,061, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017GL074954.
- Veres, D., and 15 others, 2013, The Antarctic ice core chronology (AICC2012) -- an optimized multi-parameter and multi-site dating approach for the last 120 thousand years: Climates of the Past, v. 9, p. 1733-1748, doi:10.5194/cp-9-1733-2013.
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