Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction

1. What Controls the Earth's Climate?
2. A Slowly Warming Sun
3. Sliding Plates and Colliding Continents
4. Cooling and Warming from Volcanic Eruptions
5. Earth's Orbital Variations
6. Moving Heat with Ocean Currents
7. Short-term Solar Variations
8. Catastrophic Collisions
9. A Plague of Humans
10. Tipping Points
11. What Now?

Notes
Index
About the Author
About New Society Publishers

Promotional Information

What's natural, what's caused by humans, and why climate change is a disaster for all

About the Author

Steven Earle, PhD, has worked in the Earth Sciences, has developed and taught university Earth Science courses for almost four decades, and is author of the widely used university textbook, Physical Geology, now in its second edition. He participates in climate change research and community engagement with climate change solutions including low-carbon transport initiatives, heating systems, and land stewardship. He lives with his family on a sustainable farm on Gabriola Island, Canada.

Reviews

"I love it. Earle understands the big climate picture and paints it with exceptional clarity." — James Hansen, director, Climate Science, Awareness and Solutions, Columbia University Earth Institute "People interested in climate change, which these days should be everyone, need a basic understanding of the science of why Earth's climate is the way it is, and why it sometimes changes. Earle's book makes that complicated story easy to grasp. It's a model for clear science writing, and it forcefully awakens readers to what's at stake and what needs to be done."
— Richard Heinberg, Senior Fellow, Post Carbon Institute, author, Power "An informative, succinct, and fascinating read — Steven Earle offers a unique and detailed account of Earth's climate history. His innate story-telling ability, coupled with his remarkable talent for making complex scientific information accessible, makes this page-turner a must-read for anyone seeking to understand the Earth's climate system."
— Andrew Weaver, professor, University of Victoria, lead author, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, second, third, fourth, and fifth Assessment Reports, former chief editor, Journal of Climate "An engaging tour through the complex natural processes at play in writing the Earth's long history of natural climate change to our present climate emergency. This primer will give campaigners, policymakers, and concerned citizens a more thorough understanding of climate science and renewed conviction to go all in on applying the brakes, leaving fossil fuels behind, and embracing a cleaner, healthier, and more equitable future."
— Tom Green, Senior Climate Policy Advisor, David Suzuki Foundation