---
title: "Scientists Warn of Devastating Mass Extinction Event Caused by Climate Change"
description: "Modern climate change will likely take place over a shorter period of time than previous extinction events, leaving species with far less time to adapt."
date: "2022-08-01"
modified: "2022-08-02"
authors:
  - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré"
    job_title: "Senior Staff Writer"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/mass-extinction-event-climate-change"
categories:
  - "Climate Change"
  - "Environment"
  - "Science & Energy"
tags:
  - "climate change"
  - "global warming"
  - "mass extinction"
  - "the digest"
---

# Scientists Warn of Devastating Mass Extinction Event Caused by Climate Change

![Modern climate change will likely take place over a shorter period of time than previous extinction events, leaving species with far less time to adapt.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/devastating-mass-extinction-event-climate-change.png>)
*\<em\>Image: Getty Images\</em\>*

## Mass Extinction

A new climate modeling study is offering an ominous glimpse into the [future of pretty much every species](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/scientist-humans-going-extinct>) on the planet, [*ScienceAlert* reports](<https://www.sciencealert.com/study-links-bigger-temperature-changes-with-larger-extinction-events>).

Scientists believe life on Earth's has been shaken by several mass extinction events over the last half a billion years or so. These events have most often followed sweeping periods of climate change, which has historically been triggered by a number of natural factors including asteroids and volcanoes.

Over the course of each climate catastrophe, various species of plants and animals have had to adapt to survive — or risk disappearing forever.

But according to a new study by Tohoku University climate scientist Kunio Kaiho, which was [published in the journal *Biogeosciences*](<https://bg.copernicus.org/articles/19/3369/2022/>) last month, the human-made climate change we're dealing with today will likely take place over a much smaller period of time than previous extinction events — leaving species everywhere with far less time to adapt.

## Time Crunch

The greatest known mass extinction occurred over the course of about 60,000 years. According to Kaiho's worst-case prediction, the Earth could reach a roughly 16-degree Fahrenheit increase in just a few hundred years — enough to trigger another event, but substantially less time for evolution to catch up.

Upon examining the severity of each [mass extinction event](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/zoo-animal-dna-extinction>), Kaiho found a linear relationship between the degree of temperature change and the plight of plants and animals. Essentially, the more extreme the planetary heating or cooling, the harder it was for species to survive.

While these changes will take place over several hundred years, humans, plants, and [animals](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/giant-tortoise-extinct-chilling-island>) are already facing [climate change-induced catastrophes](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/a-thousand-die-european-heat-apocalypse>).

All the more reason not to [leave all of the cleanup](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/uk-bury-nuclear-waste-under-ocean-floor>) to our descendants — that is, if humans will still be around by then.

**More on extinction:** [*Zoo Saving DNA from Rare Animals in Case They Go Extinct* ](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/zoo-animal-dna-extinction>)

## Author
At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride."

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/mharrisondupre.bsky.social>)