Canadair drops water on a fire near Petralia Soprana, in the upper Madonie, near Palermo, Sicily, Italy, as many wildfires continue plaguing the region. (AP Photo/Salvatore Cavalli)

       The Mainichi Shimbun answers some common questions readers may have about the latest United Nations report on global warming.

       Question: What's in the report?

       Answer: The report released by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change describes how climate change is undoubtedly caused by human activities and has increased the rate of extreme weather events including heavy downpours and heat waves in various parts of the world. The panel's latest report published on Aug. 9 is a result of a series of extensive reviews by scientists around the globe based on the latest findings, and can be considered the most reliable so far.

       Q: Is climate change to blame for the recent mudslide in central Japan's Shizuoka Prefecture city of Atami and major floods in Germany?

       A: There are usually multiple contributing factors when a natural disaster occurs, and we can't definitely say each and every one of them is caused by climate change. That said, according to the U.N. report, the frequency and intensity of heavy precipitation events in almost all land areas have increased since the 1950s. Climate change is very likely to be behind this trend.

       Q: Is it going to get worse?

       A: The report suggests that every additional 0.5 degrees Celsius rise in average global temperatures will clearly increase the risks of severe weather such as extreme heat waves, heavy rains and droughts. For example, the probability of a "once in 50 years" heat wave occurring today is 4.8 times higher than in the late 19th century.

       Q: Will the Earth ever go back to how it used to be?

       A: It is predicted that global temperatures will likely to continue to rise at least until the mid-21st century. To minimize the effect, we have no choice but to cut the world's greenhouse gas emissions. The planet's future is in our hands.

       (Japanese original by Kosuke Hatta, Foreign News Department)

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