FACT CHECK | A new study of historical temperature fluctuations on Earth’s surface does not reveal a „climate fraud“. Current climate change is human-induced and is happening very fast

A scientific study published in September examines the changes in Earth’s surface temperature over 485 million years. Estonian Conservative Party’s news portal Uued Uudised claims this study refutes the „climate lobby’s deception“ and proves that current climate change is not man-made. In fact, the study concludes that modern global warming is occurring at an unprecedented rate and that the negative climate impact of anthropogenic greenhouse gases is greater than previously thought.„The study once again exposes climate fraud: the Earth has almost always been much hotter in history than it is now. The study, published in the scientific journal „Science“, once again refutes the fables of climate hysterics about today’s supposedly unprecedented global warming. Dynamic temperature fluctuations have been constant throughout the Earth’s history for hundreds of millions of years,“ wrote the Uued Uudised portal on December 8.„At the very least, this confirms once again that the apocalyptic scenarios that the international climate lobby tirelessly builds are pure nonsense. Climate change has been a part of the Earth since its existence. It cannot be controlled, let alone stopped and directed in the direction desired by fanatics and lobbyists,“ the portal added.According to Facebook, the Uued Uudised article has been shared at least 33 times.Facts The study published in Science found that the Earth’s temperature has fluctuated more than previously thought over the past 485 million years. However, this does not prove that current human-induced global warming does not exist.Instead, the study shows that current global warming is occurring at an unprecedented rate.Human-induced climate change is a scientific fact.A stable climate is essential for human civilization to function.Past high temperatures do not prove that current global warming does not existQuite the opposite – the study proves once again that the current global warming is happening faster than ever before and it is not a natural change.The article cited in the Uued Uudised article was published in September in the scientific journal Science, in which scientists studied the Earth’s temperature changes over the past 485 million years. The authors confirmed what was previously known, that global temperatures have been much higher in the past than they are now.However, this result does not prove modern global warming is a „climate hoax“. Instead, the study concludes that temperatures are currently rising faster than at any other period studied over the past 485 million years. The study also found that higher temperatures have been linked to higher atmospheric carbon dioxide, or CO2, levels throughout the period studied, which is consistent with current scientific understanding of the causes of climate change.Lead author Emily J. Judd told USA Today: „I’ve seen quite a bit of misinformation crop up surrounding our paper, particularly the claim that we − humans − have nothing to worry about, with respect to climate change, since the Earth has been warmer for much of the last half-billion years. I cannot stress enough how reductive and problematic this viewpoint is“.She added that if temperatures and the CO2 levels that affect them change as rapidly as they are today due to human-caused emissions, species evolution will not be able to keep up with environmental change.Human civilization evolved in a stable climate, without which civilization would not have been possible. The change that the release of greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels has caused is historically abrupt and large.One of the main findings in the study is the conclusion that, based on the best available data for the past 485 million years, the planet’s long-term climate sensitivity (Earth system sensitivity, or ESS) is 8°C. This means that doubling the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere would increase the planet’s average temperature by 8 degrees over the long term. This estimate suggests a much higher climate sensitivity than previously thought to be most likely. In short, it means that every ton of greenhouse gases emitted into the air causes even more warming than previously known.Human-caused climate change is a scientific factThe abrupt global warming that has occurred since the mid-20th century is primarily due to human activity (the Industrial Revolution), which has been amplified mainly by the burning of fossil fuels. Human activity is the main cause of the increase in greenhouse gas concentrations.The fact that human activity is causing modern global warming has been confirmed by a huge number of studies, including the 2021 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, which included nearly 13,000 peer-reviewed studies and other materials and reflected the work of about 39,000 scientists.Verdict: False. The Uued Uudised portal misinterprets a study published in Science, claiming that it exposes a „climate fraud.“ In fact, the study shows that while Earth’s temperature has been higher in the past, current global warming is occurring at an unprecedented rate and is directly linked to CO2 emissions. The scientific consensus is that human activity is the primary cause of modern global warming.