The Big Picture Book of Environments

Three sections, Earth Past, Earth Present, and Earth Future, show us how the planet started and how climate has changed over past millennia, what varied environments have resulted, and how they are affected by the man-made climate change that we can observe now. The environments range from tropical rainforests to tundras, deserts to polar regions, abyssal depths to cities, and more. The two final spreads sketch two different pictures of life in 2080--Earth as it might be if we do nothing to slow climate change, and as it might be if we do act decisively. Based on the latest scientific articles, and packed with photos of places and animals, clear explanations of concepts and carefully chosen statistics, this book gives a view of Earth's many environments through a wide-angle lens. It takes the reader on a magic carpet ride celebrating the richness of life on Earth, while giving a sober scientific assessment of the risks we run if we continue our present heedless lifestyle.