Climate Talk: Scientist explains why Earth is ‘running a fever’

Climate Talk is a series in which experts in climate science shed light on the many impacts of climate change, including its economic, agricultural, and infrastructure costs.

Daniel Gilford, Ph.D., is a meteorologist and atmospheric scientist at Climate Central, a nonprofit organization of scientists who research and report the facts about the changing climate and how it affects people’s lives. In an interview with The Augusta Chronicle, Gilford highlights evidence that climate change is happening now.

Note: The following content was edited for length and clarity.

Augusta Chronicle: What is climate change?

Daniel Gilford: For the last 150 years or so, we’ve been burning fossil fuels. A side effect of burning those fuels is that we’re increasing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide acts like a blanket around the world. As we increase the amount of carbon dioxide, we increase temperatures across the planet. Like when you run a fever, the Earth is running a fever — and there are side effects. Sea levels are rising, ecosystems are changing, there are human health impacts, and we’re seeing changes in extreme weather like heavy rainfall or hurricanes. Climate change is the side effect of us burning things to make our world more habitable.

Augusta Chronicle: What made you decide to study climate science?

Gilford: I wanted to understand how climate change would influence storms going forward. We know there are side effects happening around the planet. I really wanted to understand hurricanes and how they would change, so I set out to become a climate scientist to study that.

Augusta Chronicle: What’s something people tend to misunderstand about climate change?

Gilford: The biggest misunderstanding is that many people throughout the United States agree that climate change is a problem and believe we should do something about it. They don’t all agree on how to solve it, but if you ask the average person whether others think climate change is a problem, most assume people do not. That perception gap is a problem. If I don’t think others see climate change as an issue, I might not push for solutions myself. Most people in the U.S. agree climate change is a problem and that we should act, but most people don’t realize that.

Augusta Chronicle: What’s something you’ve learned over the years that has surprised you?

Gilford: When you burn something, carbon molecules float into the atmosphere and can stay there for thousands of years. Once you burn something, you can’t change your mind. Those molecules now exist in the atmosphere and are causing extra heating in the atmosphere and ocean systems. Our decisions are irreversible. But there’s also opportunity. Every time you don’t burn something, you’re creating future gains for how much better the world could be.Augusta Chronicle: Why should people care about climate change and its impacts?

Gilford: Because it probably affects something you care about. Climate change is all around us. It influences our health, the economy, ecosystems, and even our vacation spots. Think about the days that were too hot to do something outside, or the heavy rainfall that caused localized flooding, or the flooding during a hurricane. These impacts can change our daily lives and cause billions of dollars in damage when a hurricane hits, or harm people’s health when a heat wave arrives. It’s very likely that every person has some aspect of their life that climate change has already influenced — their livelihood, their health, or their pocketbook.Augusta Chronicle: What’s something that can be done?

Gilford: Just because we’ve burned a lot of things and changed the composition of the atmosphere up to this point doesn’t mean there’s no hope for the future. We can continue developing technology that doesn’t rely on fossil fuels and deploy it. We can adjust our economies to incentivize those behaviors. We can consider our personal carbon budgets and how we use energy daily. There are many solutions. It’s not important to point to one and call it a silver bullet. I don’t think that’s realistic. We need a suite of solutions that we can work on collectively to protect the systems we depend on every day.

This reporting content is supported by a partnership with several funders and Journalism Funding Partners.

Erica Van Buren is the climate change reporter for The Augusta Chronicle, part of the USA TODAY Network. Connect with her at EVanBuren@usatodayco.com or on X: @EricaVanBuren32.