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Gradual v sudden collapse: what magnets teach us about climate tipping points

(Version anglaise seulement)

par John Dearing, Emeritus Professor of Physical Geography, University of Southampton
Roy Thompson, Emeritus Professor of Environmental Geophysics, University of Edinburgh
Simon Willcock, Professor of Sustainability, Bangor University

Some of Earth’s largest climate systems may collapse not with a bang, but with a whimper. Surprisingly, experiments with magnets are helping us understand how.

We now widely accept that greenhouse gases and the way we use natural resources are putting enormous stress on the world’s climate and ecosystems. It’s also well known that even small increases in stress can push Earth systems, like rainforests, ice sheets or ocean currents, past tipping points, leading to major and often irreversible changes.

But there’s a lot we still don’t know about tipping points. When might…

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