Short answers, pulled from the story.
A tipping point is a critical threshold that, when crossed, leads to large, accelerating and often irreversible changes in the climate system. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change defines this as a level of change beyond which a system reorganizes, often abruptly or irreversibly.
Scientists identified nine global core tipping elements and seven regional impact tipping elements as of September 2022. Some of these thresholds are estimated to be close to being crossed today.
The Greenland ice sheet holds enough water to raise sea levels globally by 7.2 metres if completely melted. Surface melting reduces the height of the ice sheet, exposing it to warmer air at lower altitudes and accelerating its melt further.
An August 2025 study concluded that the collapse of AMOC could start as early as the 2060s. If the AMOC does shut down, a new stable state could emerge that lasts for thousands of years.
Scientists believe there is nearly twice as much carbon in permafrost than is present in Earth's atmosphere. As the climate warms, microbes become active and decompose biological material, releasing carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere.
The monsoon in North Africa saw abrupt changes on decadal timescales during the African humid period spanning 15,000 to 5,000 years ago. This period ended suddenly in a drier state leading to desertification and regime shifts.