Countries (like the UK now) have abandoned coal fired power stations, or use wood chips from the US, the amount of electricity available to the grid is reduced, the amount of natural gas used in combined cycle power plants, is running very low.
Along comes a severe winter, solar and wind power fails, the US bans wood chip exports, there are widespread power cuts, reserves of natural gas (storage tanks) run out, and there is no gas left for central heating, thousands of people suffer from hypothermia, an epidemic of house fires break out through people trying to burn stuff to keep warm. protests and street riots happen, law enforcement breaks down, the army is called in to restore order.
Well, you clearly are asking for a "nightmare scenario". However consider what is an apocalypse? The common definition is that it is a world wide, very destructive war. Let's assume a steady increase in worldwide temperatures makes parts of Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia uninhabitable due to shifts agriculturally viable land. Where are some 2.5 billion people going to move on short notice? The simple answer is there is nowhere they could go that would not be opposed by current inhabitants. Ergo, they would have to fight their way in. With that occurring in enough places, I think that might fit your definition of "Apocalypse".
Global warming is unlikely to cause an apocalypse as such. It is possible and that is something worth looking at. If you get a runaway green house effect temperatures will rise causing more water vapour in the air, increasing the greenhouse effect and resulting in very high temperatures. This appears to be what happened on Venus.
Even the alarmists are not talking about runaway greenhouse effects.
Instead the effects are more likely to be economic.Here are some of the problems cause by global warming.
1. Increased energy in the system increases the severity of storms. Remember though in the gulf of mexico and bay of Calcutta there is a particular phenomena that causes warm water to increase the power of hurricanes and cyclones, this will increase as water temperatures increase.
2. Shifting weather patterns. The El Nino is an area of warm water off the coast of south america that when it forms causes Australia to have a drought. Global warming could destroy australia's agricultural economy. This could happen to other places as well. Europe could freeze if the gulf stream current is disrupted. This stream of warm water gives Western Europe its mild wet climates. Increase rain in other places will put pressure on other many cities and regions which can't cope with heavier rain falls.
3. Sea levels rises threaten major economic centers build on coast lines.
It is unlikely that an Apocalypse would occur, but regions could be ruined and the economic impact difficult to deal with.
well there are to ways people look at this one is religious and one is science the bible says the world will end in fire and science says it could end by a blazing meteor hitting the earth either way it sounds like these are about the same to me and the global warming will bring on an apocalypse of total fire and destruction to the planet and everyone on it from mans destructive ways.
A couple of easy choices...
The "bread basket" areas lose their rainfall, or at least the regularity of it. Worldwide famine followed by pestilence.
Additional water vapor makes it to the ozone layer due to more water vapor being lofted, and the protective thermocline between troposphere and stratosphere being further weakened. The increased UV (from reduced steady-state ozone levels) kills most plants along the equator (we already cannot grow food crops there), and forces human populations (and food crops) closer to the poles. The increased human density makes it impossible for Science to keep up with the creation and spread of contagion. Additionally, since we like to go to war over lines on maps, there will be more wars and other strife.
UK's government, because of crazy low carbon policies would not utilise the God-given coal beneath our feet.
Norwegian gas carrier sinks, UK runs out of fuel after 6 hours.
Imagine the rest, it'll make the miners' strikes damage look like a picnic.
If they pass a law against personally emitting CO2 and they execute you if you breath, that would be an Apocalypse.
Here is a possible scenario as I see it.
Alarmists get their way and effectively restrict fossil fuels.
Economies collapse.
Food and water can no longer be delivered reliably to consumers
Poor people starve
Food riots spread across the globe.
Alarmists pat themselves on the back for caring more than everyone else.
Most likely we would never let that scenario happen.
People tend to look after their self interests
it wont, just like reducing fossil fuel emission will kill civilization.
seems to me the alarmists are those protecting the polluters.
how could global warming cause an apocalypse?
