Carbon Brief

Print article Share Article Contents Expand menu Close What happened?

Print article Share Solar power generation in the UK reached a new record over the summer of 2026, as temperatures across the nation soared, according to new analysis by Carbon Brief.  Collectively over June, July and August, solar farms and rooftops generated 8.8 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity in the UK*, as shown in the chart below.  Speaking to Carbon Brief, Chris Hewett, chief executive of trade association Solar Energy UK welcomed the n

Print article Share Farmers around Europe are dealing with the aftermath of a summer of extreme heat, drought and wildfires that were exacerbated by climate change.  Human-caused climate change is increasing the severity and likelihood of many extreme weather events around the world, which is increasing volatility for food producers. This summer resulted in, for example, shrunken potatoes in the Netherlands, reduced carrot harvests in France, dried-up ric

China’s carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions fell by 1% in the second quarter of 2026, as oil consumption plummeted amid the strait of Hormuz crisis. The country’s use of oil fell by 9% overall and by 16% for transport, after the disruptions to supply from the Gulf through the strait. This guest post is by: Lauri Myllyvirta, lead analyst at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air China’s total CO2 emissions fell desp

Print article Share Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas and the second-largest contributor to global warming after carbon dioxide (CO2). Methane traps heat in the atmosphere more efficiently than CO2, but has a significantly shorter lifespan, fading after just a few decades. Therefore, reducing emissions of methane – a gas primarily produced by agriculture, fossil fuels and waste management – is a powerful option for limiting global warming in the near-term.

Print article Share Every six to seven years, climate modelling groups around the world run a coordinated set of simulations that explore how the climate could change in the future.  These simulations form a key line of evidence for future projections used in Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assessment reports.  They are built around a set of common scenarios – or “pathways” – of future greenhouse gas emissions. A new set of scenar

Print article Share More than 40% of children under the age of 10 globally are already experiencing at least 20 additional “heat-stress days” due to climate change. This is according to a new attribution study, published in Science Advances, which combines climate models with demographic data to assess the age groups and regions that are exposed to the most hot, humid days. The study finds that children up to the age of nine already face more additional heat-s

Print article Share Article Contents Expand menu Close The plan would increase UK emissions

Print article Share The UK is pioneering the use of “super batteries” that can store energy for long periods, smoothing the output from wind and solar power as the country moves towards net-zero. It is aiming to build “long-duration energy storage” (LDES) that fills up when supplies are plentiful, to help cover the gaps when the wind does not blow and the sun does not shine. These periods can last for days or even weeks – sometimes referred to as “dunkelf

The world is currently experiencing what is expected to become the strongest El Niño on record – dubbed a “super El Niño” by many. El Niño is the warm phase of a recurring climate pattern in the tropical Pacific that releases heat from the ocean into the atmosphere. This temporarily raises global temperatures and reshapes rainfall and extreme weather around the world – impacting the lives of billions of people. The current El Niño event began in June and is expected to last in

Print article Share The second-largest reservoir in the US reached a record-low water height on Saturday – just days after the country’s largest reservoir broke its own record.  Both Lake Mead and Lake Powell are located on the Colorado River.  They provide water for populations across seven US states in the south-western US, with around 40 million people getting some or all of their municipal water from the Colorado River. The river also provides wate

Print article Share Emissions from land-use change – including deforestation, loss of peatland and forest degradation – have been falling over the course of the 21st century. The latest Global Carbon Budget report, formally published in May in the journal Earth System Science Data, notes a “statistically significant decrease” in land-use change emissions since the late 1990s. The 21st-century decline in land-use emissions has accelerated in recent years, with

Print article Share China has published a new five-year plan for coal, the latest in a slew of important policy documents for the country’s energy transition. The 15th five-year plan for the development of the coal industry was published by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the National Energy Administration (NEA) on 10 August, covering the period 2026-2030.  This is a key period, covering the years building up to China’s pledge to

Print article Share An upcoming UK government consultation on weakening targets for electric vehicles (EVs) could cost consumers as much as £3bn a year by 2030, according to Carbon Brief analysis. It could require the UK to import an extra 17m barrels of oil in 2030, raising expected net imports by 8%, as well as adding 2.5% to national emissions that year, the analysis shows. After years of fierce lobbying by parts of the car industry – and despite the s

Print article Share China has released a five-year plan dedicated to addressing climate change.  The 15th five-year plan for a national response to climate change is the latest in a series to outline in-depth climate and energy targets for the 2026-2030 period.  These include five-year plans for “building a Beautiful China”, developing a “new-type energy system” and developing renewable energy.  There are also separate “action plans” for the

Print article Share Heatwaves are becoming more likely and more intense due to climate change, impacting sources of power generation around the world as they work to meet increased demand. When temperatures soared past 40C in parts of Europe in June and July 2026, nuclear reactors shuttered, gas plants’ efficiency fell, wind speeds dropped and electricity networks sagged. Yet, while all types of electricity generation are affected variously by extreme he

Print article Share When carbon dioxide (CO2) is released from a factory or power plant, the gas can be captured and permanently stored underground, preventing it from driving climate change. This is the idea underpinning carbon capture and storage (CCS), a technology that is at the heart of many nations’ net-zero plans. Influential organisations, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), describe CCS as “critical” for cutting emissions f

Print article Share The general public often underestimate support for climate action, while overestimating the real-world actions taken by other people to address the problem, according to new research. The study, published in Nature Climate Change, explores the differences between people’s support for climate change, their behaviour and their assumptions about other people’s behaviour. It is based on multiple surveys of more than 5,000 people across Germany

Print article Share In recent days, prominent climate sceptics and rightwing commentators have shared charts on social media incorrectly implying that Europe is having its “quietest” year for wildfires in 2026. These include Dr Matthew Wielicki, a former University of Alabama geochemist and self-described “professor in exile”, who was recently appointed by the Trump administration to lead the US Global Change Research Program. However, these charts paint a mis

Print article Share The global goal to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030 “will not be achieved” unless action by countries “accelerates rapidly”, says a draft UN report. Countries are falling short on 22 of the 23 targets for 2030 they set under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), the “Paris Agreement for nature”. That is according to a draft version of a global report prepared by the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), publis