He climate change (rising sea levels, increasing temperatures…) it is already having effects in the Balearic Islands (Mallorca, Ibiza, Formentera and Menorca). According to experts, things will get worse if greenhouse gas emissions are not curbed, pointing to a catastrophic future.
In the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 28) a stark warning has been issued: if global warming does not exceed an increase of 1.5°C, Many of the coastal cities threatened by rising sea levels will surviveBut if the temperature rises by 3 degrees, they will all be buried under water. And this could happen as early as 2050 if the situation is not reversed.
He catastrophic impact The impact that this rise in sea level can have on the ecosystem is incalculable, and also on the geography of the Balearic Islands. And it won’t be long now, since those born in these years will experience it. NASA’s forecast is that in By 2100 the sea level in the Balearic Islands has risen by almost half a metre (0.49 centimeters). This figure is set within a “normal” scenario, but if more catastrophic (but not improbable) forecasts are taken into account, in the year 2100 the sea level in the archipelago could rise by more than one meter, according to NASA estimates, and the consequences will be devastating, without palliatives.
Uninhabitable areas
Accurately predict which regions of Europe will become uninhabitable Due to climate change, this is difficult as it will depend on a variety of factors, including specific changes in climate, topography, infrastructure and the adaptive capacity of communities.
But according to Ecoportal, southern Europe, including countries such as Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece, could face Rising temperatures and longer droughtswhich could impact agriculture, water supplies and human health.
Within Spain, the driest areas, such as the Balearic archipelago, will have to face several important challenges: problems related to the low availability of fresh watercoastal erosion and impacts on tourism due to rising temperatures and changing weather patterns.
And as the Earth’s climate warms, heat waves are becoming more frequent and severe. The health dangers of extreme heat are of increasing concern to scientists and medical experts. And for good reason: heat stress is one of the leading causes of climate-related deaths.
Extreme levels of Heat stress has more than doubled in the past 40 years And that trend is expected to continue, says Colin Raymond of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. Raymond is the lead author of a 2020 study on extreme heat and humidity, published in Science Advances.
Dying of heat
Scientists have identified the maximum combination of heat and humidity that a human body can withstand without dying.
Even A young, healthy person will die after enduring six hours of 35-degree heat. combined with 100 percent humidity or 46°C with 50 percent humidity, although new research shows that threshold could be significantly lower.
When this temperature is reached, sweat (the body’s primary tool for lowering its core temperature) no longer evaporates from the skin, eventually leading to heatstroke, organ failure, and death.
