"
The tipping point for irreversible global warming may have already been triggered, the scientist who led the biggest-ever expedition to the Arctic has warned.
"The disappearance of summer sea ice in the Arctic is one of the first landmines in this minefield, one of the tipping points that we set off first when we push warming too far," said Professor Markus Rex.
"And one can essentially ask if we haven't already stepped on this mine and already set off the beginning of the explosion." "
German research vessel to return from 'dying Arctic'
Peatlands worldwide are drying out, threatening to release 860 million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year
Specifically,
our new research in Nature Climate Change found drying peatlands could release an additional 860 million tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every year, by around 2100. To put this into perspective, Australia emitted
539 million tonnes in 2019.