The warnings about global warming continue to get more dire with the passage of time. By several counts, the Earth is on track to go well past the maximum overall temperature hikes that many countries agreed to avoid. Simply put, we're getting hotter even faster than we expected.
The current global trends get a US-centric review in the recently-released Fifth National Climate Assessment, showing effects and opportunities from climate change. Geography professor Vivek Shandas at Portland State University is one of the contributors to the report; he joins us with and overview and details of his contributions.