Six Degrees

Our Future on a Hotter Planet
by Mark Lynas

In 2001, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released a landmark report projecting average global surface temperatures to rise between 1.4 degrees and 5.8 degrees Celsius (roughly 2 to 10 degrees Fahrenheit) by the end of this century. Based on this forecast, author Mark Lynas outlines what to expect from a warming world, degree by degree. At a rise of 1 degree Celsius, most coral reefs and many mountain glaciers will be lost. A rise of 3 degrees Celsius would spell the collapse of the Amazon rainforest, disappearance of Greenland's ice sheet, and the creation of deserts across the midwestern United States and southern Africa. A rise of 6 degrees Celsius would eliminate most life on Earth, including much of humanity.

Based on authoritative scientific articles, the latest computer models, and information about past warm events in Earth’s history, Six Degrees promises to be an eye-opening warning that humanity will ignore at its peril.

Winner of the 21st Royal Society Prize for Science Books

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