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Greenhouse gas emissions caused by human activity have helped to reverse a 2000-year long cooling trend in the Arctic, leading to the warmest average temperatures over the past decade, according to a new study. Record breaking can be fun, but this potentially disastrous climate shift is not one to be proud of, and has implications for not only the Arctic, but for the entire planet. The study, which involved 30 researchers from the U.S., Britain, Denmark, Norway, Canada and Finland, offers the biggest picture of the impact that we have had on the planet’s climate patterns.  According to David Schneider, one of the article’s coauthors:

It’s basically saying the greenhouse gas emissions are overwhelming the system.

The report also indicates that when the Earth wobbles in its axis of rotation, the movement has contributed to the long-term cooling trend, and does not account for the recent warming as climate change skeptics have argued. As we draw closer to the U.N. climate talks in Copenhagen this December, we need to demand that international leaders take bold action to curb global emissions. It’s time we start setting records we can celebrate.