New threat: Greenhouse gas 80 times more potent than CO2 rapidly filling Earth’s atmosphere

Three years ago, countries around the world agreed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions like methane by 30% by the end of 2020. That gives you time to reduce your carbon emissions. But a recent study shows that global methane emissions are still rising fast, too fast. Live Science writes that the concentration of methane in the atmosphere is now rising faster than ever before in nearly 40 years of observations.

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Although some animals and organic decomposition processes are natural sources of methane in the atmosphere, in recent years, human activities have become the main cause of filling the atmosphere with this greenhouse gas. Scientists have discovered that humans are responsible for 2/3 of global methane emissions into the Earth’s atmosphere. Scientists say this is a major problem that has not yet been solved, but together with carbon dioxide emissions, it is accelerating the pace of climate change.

Methane is the second-largest human-caused greenhouse gas contributing to global warming, after carbon dioxide. Although humans produce less methane than carbon dioxide emissions, methane is 80 times more powerful than CO2 at trapping heat.

Calculations show that the average temperature on Earth has increased by 1.2 degrees Celsius since the pre-industrial era, with methane responsible for 0.5 degrees. In the atmosphere, methane mixes quickly with oxygen to form water and carbon dioxide. At the same time, methane does not last as long as carbon dioxide, which can retain heat for thousands of years.

Scientists say that methane emissions from human activities have increased from 2000 to 2020. In the 2000s, an additional 6.1 million tons of methane were released into the atmosphere each year. In the 2010s – already 20.9 million tons. In 2020, the increase in methane emissions reached 42 million tons. Over the past 4 years, the increase in methane concentrations has become even greater, and the growth rate is now higher than ever.

Sources of methane associated with human activities include animal husbandry, coal mining, natural gas extraction and processing, rice cultivation, and landfilling of organic waste, which together contribute to 65% of methane emissions.

The remaining emissions come from natural sources, particularly the decomposition of organic matter in wetlands, rivers and lakes.

As of 2020, 5 countries are the leaders in methane emissions into the atmosphere: China, India, the United States, Brazil and Russia. Emissions are now increasing in China, South and Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

According to scientists, uncontrolled methane emissions are a major problem. Recent observations of methane concentrations in the atmosphere are consistent with climate scenarios that see average temperatures rise by 3 degrees Celsius by 2100.

To keep global temperature rise above 1.5 degrees Celsius, methane emissions need to be reduced as quickly as possible. The authors of the study say emissions need to be reduced by at least 45 percent by 2025.

As I already wrote FocusScientists have warned world bodies about a new global threat. Bacterial resistance to antibiotics has been a serious threat around the world for years. But scientists say if we focus all our attention on this, we may miss the emergence of equally dangerous threats to humanity.

Moreover Focus wrote that Neanderthals and ancient humans divided territories with the help of corpses, as scientists found. The research shows that two different species of the hominid family began to bury their dead at the same time and in the same place.