Spectacular state-of-the-art imagery and the latest scientific knowledge highlight a breathtaking guide to natures most cataclysmic forces Encyclopedic in scope and visually stunning, this is the most comprehensive work ever published on the earths climate, an awesome force that, at different points in time, has wiped out 95 percent of all living creatures, plunged the world into ice ages, and played a leading role in every stage of human evolution. Climate: explains extreme weather-related events, from the destruction of coral reefs in Belize to eroding coastlines in the South Pacific presents expert predictions about what is in store for the worlds climate in the short- and long-term future demonstrates climates devastating force through 630 full-color illustrations, including digitally generated imagery, graphs, diagrams, geographical maps, and satellite photos Explaining how our modern lifestyles shift the earths climate, the authors sound a warning bell: We may be witnessing the beginnings of a mass extinction, caused not by an ice age, asteroids, or volcanoes, but by what might be an even more destructive forceourselves. And they offer steps we can take before its too late to avoid a global disaster.