The current outlook for Earth with the rise in global warming is not good and unfortunately it's going to get far worse - the world's population is expected to increase from 6bn to more than 8bn in the next 50 years, putting great strain on the planet's already very stretched resources.

Understanding how the global carbon cycle works is essential for experts to predict how our climate may behave in the future. It will help us figure out exactly what measures we need to take to reverse the world's destruction. It's not a simple process - but then predicting the future never is.

The launch of a recent joint report from the Hadley Centre and the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research made some worrying predictions. By the 2080s, annual average temperatures across the UK may rise by between 2°C and 3.5°C. Our summers will become more frequent and very cold winters will become increasingly rare.

Scientists also estimate farming and agriculture will undergo serious difficulties, as soil moisture across England falls by as much as 40%. Sea levels around the UK are set to rise by between 26 and 86cm, meaning that places like southeast England will become more susceptible to storm surges and serious flooding.

To reverse the effects of global warming most scientists and governments agree that we need to take drastic action. We must reduce the world's carbon emissions, cut back on the production of CFCs, and other ozone-destroying chemicals, and halt deforestation.

Our planet has been gradually heating up since the last Ice Age ended 10,000 years ago. Temperatures have steadily increased at around a quarter of a degree for every 1,000 years. Until recently. During the last 100 years temperatures have increased by twice that amount. As if that wasn't alarming enough, all the warmest days occurred during the last decade. Experts are now predicting that temperatures are set to increase by as much as 6°C during the coming century - a rise that could herald devastating consequences.