Fourth Report of the Intergovernmental Panel of Experts on Climate Change: Summary

Abstract

The fourth report of the IPCC shows scientific information based on recent studies carried out in the last years. It has four components: the physical science basis, Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, Mitigation and the synthesis report. Among the very important premises of this fourth report, it has the new definition of Climate Change in which incorporates the climate variability. It also highlights the total certainty of the heating of the climatic system and that the anthropogenic heating and the increase of the sea level will continue although the greenhouse gas emissions decrease enough to stabilize the concentrations of gases, this makes that the systems, sectors and regions are specially affected by the climate change. The report shows the probable impacts in the following sectors: agriculture, forestry and ecosystems, water resources, human health, industry and settlements as well as reduction options in different sectors.