Podcast summary
We Weren't Expecting This: What Does a Super El Niño Mean For the Climate? with Tad Patzek
Cumulative CO₂ drives warming; feedback speeds up
Human CO₂ pushes global climate by raising atmospheric CO₂ uniformly; temperature tracks cumulative emissions, not year-to-year rates, while declining albedo and accelerating ocean heat uptake amplify warming and extremes.
Annual cuts help little without sustained rate
Because warming is approximately linear with cumulative CO₂ since ~1850, halving emissions in one year barely shifts the running total; meaningful benefit requires reducing the yearly injection rate over decades.
Earth’s heat system is stable, but harsher
The climate’s mean state appears “reverting,” so El Niño/La Niña cycles likely persist; however each excursion rides on a higher background temperature, increasing event intensity even if extremes oscillate.
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