On a sweltering summer day, 20 years ago, climatologist James E Hansen warned Washington and the world that humans were warming the planet. And on today, Dr. Hansen will give a briefing to the House committee on global warming to say that “that it is almost, but not quite, too late to start defusing what he calls the ‘global warming time bomb.’” He will offer a plan for cuts in emissions and also a warning about the risks of further inaction.

takepart and read more about Dr. Hansen’s proposals

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Photo: James E. Hansen, a NASA climate expert, used a pair of cardboard dice 20 years ago to explain that humans were tipping the odds of harmful climate change by adding greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. He displays one die in his Manhattan office. From New York Times.