For years, scientists and the U.N. have spoken about critical climate tipping points that, if crossed, could potentially cause irreversible changes to the planet and accelerate climate change.

Exeter

Researchers at the University of Exeter have released a report indicating that the world has likely reached its first major climate tipping point, with warm water coral reefs experiencing mass mortality due to global warming. Scientists say that with global temperatures rising by 1.4 degrees, there is a 99% probability that coral reefs will die, marking an irreversible change for marine ecosystems and the nearly one billion people whose livelihoods depend on them.

While some small reefs may survive, the overall destruction is considered too vast to reverse. The report also highlights other potential climate tipping points, such as ice sheet melting and permafrost thawing, which have not yet been crossed. However, researchers point to the growing adoption of renewable energy and electric vehicles as positive developments that could help mitigate further climate change.

Coral reefs reach climate point of no return, scientists warn

For years, scientists in the United Nations have spoken about critical climate tipping points that, if crossed, could potentially cause irreversible changes to our planet and accelerate climate change. Now, according to a report published today by researchers at the University of Exeter, the first tipping point has likely already been reached. CBS News Senior Coordinating Producer for Climate and Environmental Coverage, Tracy Wolf, joins us now to talk about this. So, Tracy, this, of course, seems incredibly dire. Can you talk about what tipping point we've now crossed? Yes. So, warm water corals have been experiencing mass mortality rates for quite some time. You know, we've already reached 1.4 degrees warming of global warming. Basically, most scientists say that between 1.4, 1.5 degrees warming, you're going to see 99% probability that coral reefs will die. Now, this is incredibly critical to our ecosystems. Coral reefs provide habitat for more than a quarter of marine species. Almost a billion people on this Earth. Their livelihoods are supported off coral reefs. So, as this tipping point has been reached, there's never been a time on this planet where you and I or any human has existed without coral reefs. And so that's why it's one of these critical tipping points that they say, you know, unfortunately, we have now seen the destruction so vast, it's irreversible to kind of rehab. Now, there are some reefs that will be able to survive that, but they'll be very small. And so this is kind of that first tipping point. Other tipping points that researchers are looking for in the future that they're closely examining include, you know, the melting of ice sheets, the collapse of ocean currents, melting of permafrost, the destruction of the Amazon rainforest. Those are a couple of others that we haven't quite reached yet. Yet being the key word there. And Tracy, so much of this seems very distressing. Like, is there any good news to look at here when it comes to climate change? Yes. Well, I did appreciate in this report there were bad tipping points that we've just spoken about, and there are some good tipping points. Good tipping points being things that we are seeing accelerate that could help address global warming, mainly mass adoption on the global scale of things like solar, wind, renewable energy, electric vehicles. Those kinds of things which can help replace polluting industries with cleaner ones. We're seeing more mass adoption of that. And, of course, the more that we can accelerate those types of things, the more that we can hope to help prevent further acceleration beyond 1.5 degrees of global warming. I like the idea of a good tipping point in there, too. Tracy Wolf, thank you very much. Thanks.

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