Warmer Global Temperatures

• Warmer global temperatures have many results. Ice sheets are melting all over the world. Habitats for polar species are becoming warmer, and in some cases unlivable by many species. Sea levels are expected to rise because of the melting ice, which will inundate many coastal areas. Unfortunately, this will leave millions of people homeless. Glaciers that serve as a water source for many people are melting at unprecedented rates, which may ultimately leave millions without water for drinking, irrigation, or hydropower. Warmer overall temperatures also mean higher maximums, creating a greater number of killer heat waves during the summer months.
  
  

Extreme Weather

• Hurricanes draw their power from the heat of the underlying ocean, so warmer ocean temperatures (due to global warming) would lead to stronger and more frequent hurricanes. Hurricanes produce a high degree of property damage to people living in coastal regions as well as loss of life.
  
  Increasing frequency and intensity of wildfires is also expected with global warming. Less localized rainfall allows trees and other vegetation to become dry and flammable.
  
  Higher air temperatures due to global warming leads to a higher rate of evaporation in lakes, oceans and rivers. In dry climates, water within soil is evaporated and forms rain clouds. Dryer soils which have no water to lose to evaporation will reduce the number of rain clouds, making soil even dryer.
  
  Just as droughts have created a vicious cycle of dry soil, producing no rain clouds which produces dry soil, higher ocean temperatures have lead to higher evaporation and the formation of a greater number of storm clouds. These clouds can become so laden with water that the ensuing rain is torrential and causes flooding, which creates more rain clouds and more rain.
  
  

Increased Diseases

• Many diseases are caused by insect vectors that thrive in wet areas. Areas prone to flooding will have more frequent and longer lasting outbreaks of diseases like malaria, cholera, dengue fever and West Nile virus. These diseases already kill millions of humans annually.
  
  

Declining and Extinct Species

• Many species are perfectly suited for the climatic conditions under which they presently live. Warmer temperatures are already responsible for reduced hibernation periods in bears, which causes them to not produce young as well. Caribou, which feed on lichens, are finding melting permafrost is affecting their food supply. Warmer arctic waters are seeing more and more invasive species, which are outcompeting native species that live there. Melting ice packs are giving polar bears less space than their massive size requires. Flower species are beginning to bloom sooner, sometimes before their pollinators return from their wintering grounds. It is suspected that hundreds of species will become extinct if global warming continues on its current trajectory.
  
  

Acidifying Oceans

• When carbon dioxide concentration increases, the ocean water becomes acidified. When carbon dioxide meets water, a weak carbonic acid is formed (which is the primary reason soda is bad for your teeth). In much the same way, increasing carbon dioxide levels in the air are causing the world's oceans to become more acidic. This is leading to a reduction in plankton. Because plankton is the base of the oceanic food web, the ramifications up the food chain may be severe.