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Warming imperils clouds that deter ‘hothouse’ conditions
- According to a recent research published in the journal Nature Geoscience, stratocumulus clouds could disappear if the amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere increases threefold. This could result in steep increase (by about 8 degree Celsius) in Earth’s temperature in addition to the global warming that comes from increased greenhouse concentrations. This would further lead to severe climate change resulting in worsen heat waves, droughts and flooding, increased cyclones and rise in sea level.
- Stratocumulus clouds are low-level clumps or patches of cloud varying in colour from bright white to dark grey. They are the most common clouds on earth. Stratocumulus clouds cover about 20% of subtropical oceans, mostly near western seaboards such as the coasts of California, Mexico and Peru.
- Stratocumulus clouds cool and shade the earth as they reflect they reflect incoming sunlight. This makes them important for regulating Earth’s surface temperature.