Science Snippets: The Living Planet on the Brink

Draft script:

The 2025 State of the Climate Report was published 29 October 2025. The headline at Eos: 2025 State of the Climate Report: Our Planet’s Vital Signs are Crashing. Here’s the lede: “A yearly analysis of climate change’s progress and effects shows a ‘planet on the brink’ of ecological breakdown and widespread crisis and suggests that only rapid climate mitigation can avoid the worst consequences.”

The first author of the associated peer-reviewed paper is then quoted: “We felt an ethical responsibility to document this turning point clearly and to speak directly to humanity about where we stand. What we’re seeing now are signs of systemic distress.

The report is published each year. This is the sixth annual report, and it “analyzes global data on Earth’s atmosphere, oceans, energy, ecosystems, food systems, and more. Researchers identified our planet’s so-called vital signs, including ocean temperature, surface temperature, sea ice extent, and carbon pollution. Of the 34 vital signs, 22 were at record levels, indicating a highly stressed Earth system.”

The article at Eos continues: “For example, 2024 surpassed 2023 as the hottest years on record. Ocean heat and wildfire-related tree cover loss are both at all-time highs. Deadly weather disasters surged in 2024 and 2025, with floods, wildfires, and typhoons killing hundreds in the U.S. alone. Atmospheric warming is showing signs of accelerating. Ice at the poles continues to melt, contributing to sea level rise. And the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, a global network of currents critical for circulating heat on Earth, is showing signs of weakening, which could trigger further climate disruptions.”

The author of the associated peer-reviewed paper quoted again: “Without effective strategies, we will rapidly encounter escalating risks that threaten to overwhelm systems of peace, governance, and public and ecosystem health. In short, we’ll be on the fast track to climate-driven chaos, a dangerous trajectory for humanity.”

For those of you unimpressed by a single report, another State of the Climate report was published in August. According to the article at Eos, “The Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society report, authored by more than 500 scientists, presented similar indicators of a stressed Earth system, including record-setting ice loss at the poles, unusually high global temperatures, and an increase in the frequency and severity of weather disasters and wildfires.”

Need I point out that the designed-to-fail Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change concluded Earth was amid the most abrupt event in planetary history as a result of humans burning fossil fuels? Need I point out the IPCC also concluded this human-driven crisis is irreversible? These conclusions were reached by the IPCC with two reports published more than six years ago. There is no mention of these two reports in the article at Eos. Nor is there any mention of the IPCC in the peer-reviewed paper, to which I now turn.

The peer-reviewed paper was published 29 October 2025. Titled The 2025 state of the climate report: a planet on the brink, the open-access paper was published in the renowned BioScience. It was authored by 12 scholars and Mike Mann.

The peer-reviewed, open-access paper in BioScience begins with two paragraphs that rely on additional peer-reviewed research to describe the problem and how it can be addressed: “We are hurtling toward climate chaos. The planet’s vital signs are flashing red. The consequences of human-driven alterations of the climate are no longer future threats but are here now. This unfolding emergency stems from failed foresight, political inaction, unsustainable economic systems, and misinformation. Almost every corner of the biosphere is reeling from intensifying heat, storms, floods, droughts, or fires. The window to prevent the worst outcomes is rapidly closing. In early 2025, the World Meteorological Organization reported that 2024 was the hottest year on record ... This was likely hotter than the peak of the last interglacial, roughly 125,000 years ago ... Rising levels of greenhouse gases remain the driving force behind this escalation. These recent developments emphasize the extreme insufficiency of global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mark the beginning of a grim new chapter for life on Earth.

In this report, we seek to speak candidly to fellow scientists, policymakers, and humanity at large. Given our roles in research and higher education, we share an ethical responsibility to sound the alarm about escalating global risks and to take collective action in confronting them with clarity and resolve. We show evidence of accelerated warming and document changes in Earth’s vital signs. These indicators build on the framework introduced by Ripple and colleagues (2020), who issued a declaration of a climate emergency that has garnered support from approximately 15,800 scientist signatories worldwide. We also examine recent extreme weather disasters and discuss physical and social risks. The final sections of the report include suggested climate mitigation strategies and the broader societal transformations needed to secure a livable future.”

After the opening two paragraphs, a Box provides 17 Key Highlights from the peer-reviewed paper. These include expected information, some of which I have reported earlier in this space:

The year 2024 set a new mean global surface temperature record, signaling an escalation of climate upheaval.

22 of 34 planetary vital signs are at record levels.

The human enterprise is driving ecological overshoot. Population, livestock, meat consumption, and gross domestic product are all at record highs, with an additional approximately 1.3 million humans and 0.5 million ruminants added weekly.

The bad news continues, in this Box and beyond. However, some rare admissions are made: “A dangerous hothouse Earth trajectory may now be more likely due to accelerated warming, self-reinforcing feedbacks, and tipping points.” The peer-reviewed paper includes mention of self-reinforcing feedback loops.

The following two paragraphs restore my cynicism: “Climate change mitigation strategies are available, cost effective, and urgently needed. From forest protection and renewables to plant-rich diets, we can still limit warming if we act boldly and quickly.

Social tipping points can drive rapid change. Even small, sustained nonviolent movements can shift public norms and policy, highlighting a vital path forward amid political gridlock and ecological crisis.”

Again, the designed-to-fail IPCC concluded Earth is amid rapid, irreversible climate change. There is no evidence to suggest “we can still limit warming if we boldly and quickly.” There is no evidence to suggest that “even small, sustained nonviolent movements can shift public norms and policy, highlighting a vital path forward.”

Abundant evidence indicates we have painted ourselves into the ultimate corner. The scientifically conservative peer-reviewed literature indicates our collective actions are driving to extinction all life on Earth. Self-proclaimed scientists are flying around the world to meet with each other and therefore solve our problems. Among other ideas, they are indicating we need to change our diets to save ourselves. I’ve been to dozens of these professional conferences. I’ve never seen one that lacked meat on the menu.