Feedback loops can dangerously impact climate, could be the cause of humankind’s doom: Study

A new research published by a group of international scientists has suggested that Earth's climate may be on the precipice of permanent change due to 'dangerous' feedback loops. Thestudy published in One Earth journal states that the Earth currently has 41 climate feedback loops, out of which 27 are responsible for increased global temperatures.The scientists expressed surprise upon finding a large number of climate-changing feedback loops during the study.

“To the best of our knowledge, this is the most extensive list available of climate feedback loops, and not all of them are fully considered in climate models," said Christopher Wolf, one of the lead authors of the study.

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What are climate change feedback loops?

Succinctly put, feedback loops are the climate's equivalent of a vicious cycle where a change in one metric accelerates or decelerates the warming trend of the planet.

An example of the phenomenon can be the melting of ice caps. As the world gets hotter, ice melts, exposing the darker-coloured land or water underneath.

The dark surface absorbs more light, which in turn contributes to warming and the ice melts at a much more rapid pace.

The melting of glacial ice then contributes to overflooding of glacial lakes which leads to flooding in places where the human population lives.

Read more: Millions at risk due to flooding from melting mountain glaciers: Report

Another example can be the wildfires that ravaged different parts of the Earth last year. The burning of dry vegetation introduces poisonous gases in the atmosphere, including carbon dioxide which accelerates the greenhouse effect.

As the climate becomes warm, another wildfire is kickstarted. In the end, the process becomes an iteration loop, a cyclical loop if you may – having no start or end.

Closer to home, the use of air-conditioners is the perfect example of a climate feedback loop. People use ACs to cool their homes but they releasegreenhouse gases.As the planet heats up due to the release of these gases, we increase the intensity of AC use, thereby heating the planet even more.

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Has the clock ticked by?

The scientists involved in the research came out with seven dampening feedback loops as well. These loops, essentially, absorb planet-heating carbon emissions.

The researchers urged that the feedback loops improving the Earth's climate be studied extensively to understand how they work within the overarching complex climate system.

Moreover, they called for immediate reductions in planet-warming pollution and an increase in research on climate feedback loops.

The scientific community has known about these loops for a long time but themainstream media has rarely carried the topic on its front pages.

(With inputs from agencies)

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