By the end of the next president’s term, in January 2029, much of our climate fate will be sealed.
The world’s carbon budget is running out. Each year, humans emit around 42 billion metric tons of CO2. If we continue at that rate, we have less than five years left before we’ve emitted so much that it’s very unlikely that the world will be able to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (34.7 degrees Fahrenheit), a key goal of the Paris climate agreement.
A massive, 80-foot-wide clock in New York City’s Union Square is counting down the minutes. On Monday, it ticked from five years down to four years and 364 days.
