@rtmcswee

Senior Science Editor at @CarbonBrief with a fondness for baking and Arsenal FC. All opinions are my own, however dull they might be.

 Probably on a train
carbonbrief.org
Joined March 2014
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  • Followers4.2K
544Media
Still kind of reeling from this… 😳
Leonardo DiCaprio
@LeoDiCaprio14 Oct 2018
.@CarbonBrief has compiled data from 70+ peer-reviewed climate studies to show how #climatechange is projected to affect the world by regions. Check out the interactive summary here: interactive.carbonbrief.org/…

Interactive: The impacts of climate change at 1.5C, 2C and beyond

Carbon Brief has extracted key metrics showing how global warming is projected to affect the world

interactive.carbonbrief.org
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Tim Stanley@timothy_stanleyJul 30
That popular graph suggesting Europe has actually had a good year for wildfires is misleading - data encompass Russia, including Siberia - can include fires deliberately lit to manage cropland - area burned by wildfires across EU is second only to 2022 carbonbrief.org/factcheck-no…

Factcheck: No, Europe is not having its ‘quietest’ year for wildfires - Carbon Brief

In recent days, prominent climate sceptics and rightwing commentators have shared charts on social media incorrectly implying that Europe is having its “quietest” year for wildfires in 2026.

carbonbrief.org
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Carbon Brief
@CarbonBriefJul 30
NEW – Factcheck: No, Europe is not having its ‘quietest’ year for wildfires ✍️ @GAViglione and @rtmcswee Read here: buff.ly/pDQGTR3
The area burned by wildfires in the EU in 2026 by end of July is second only to 2022. Weekly cumulative burned area (hectares). Line graph shows 2026 burned area reaching over 400,000 hectares by late July, far exceeding the 2006-2025 average. Source: EFFIS - (alt text generated by Google Gemini)

ALT The area burned by wildfires in the EU in 2026 by end of July is second only to 2022. Weekly cumulative burned area (hectares). Line graph shows 2026 burned area reaching over 400,000 hectares by late July, far exceeding the 2006-2025 average. Source: EFFIS - (alt text generated by Google Gemini)

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Carbon Brief
@CarbonBriefJul 24
NEW – Factcheck: No, Europe’s heatwaves are not being ‘caused’ by declining air pollution ✍️ written by @rtmcswee 💬 with comments from @bjornhs, @erichfischer and Pedro Roldan-Gomez Read here ➡️ buff.ly/ukIO2fI
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Zeke Hausfather
@hausfathMay 1
The arc of the scenario universe is long, but it bends inevitably toward more realistic emissions. A new paper outlining the emissions scenarios we will be using in the upcoming IPCC AR7 report notes that "the CMIP6 high emission levels (quantified by SSP5-8.5) have become implausible".
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Simon Evans@DrSimEvansMar 25
NEW: Have YOU seen these FALSE OR MISLEADING CLAIMS about the NORTH SEA? Find out more: carbonbrief.org/factcheck-ni…
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If you want to know more about how we established that there is a statistically significant increase in the speed of global warming since 2015, @CarbonBrief explains it nicely.
Carbon Brief
@CarbonBriefMar 6
NEW – Pace of global warming has nearly doubled since 2015, reveals study ✍️ @AyeshaTandon Read here: buff.ly/60Q5TkL
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For such a softly spoken guy, Ben doesn't hold back on the Trump administration: "Insane. That’s the only word for it. Removing our ability to measure and monitor how the world around us is changing, makes no sense whatsoever."
Carbon Brief
@CarbonBriefJan 15
NEW – Prof Ben Santer: Trump administration is ‘embracing ignorance’ on climate science | @rtmcswee Read here ⬇️ buff.ly/2lKP1CG
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Here's our annual look at the most talked-about climate papers of the previous year:
Carbon Brief
@CarbonBriefJan 13
NEW – Analysis: The climate papers most featured in the media in 2025 | @rtmcswee @AyeshaTandon Read here: buff.ly/sF3cD1c
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Carbon Brief
@CarbonBrief11 Nov 2025
Are you a journalist covering COP30 looking for new and diverse sources? Check out the Global South Climate Database. This publicly available, searchable database features 1000+ climate scientists and experts from the global south. 🌍🔗 buff.ly/5bhfWeV
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Here's our annual look at COP delegates: Top story: no US delegation for the 1st time in COP history Also: ~56k people registered, so no big drop-off despite accommodation issues in Belém (Caveat: these are provisional figures) Also also: most "virtual" delegates ever #COP30
Carbon Brief
@CarbonBrief11 Nov 2025
NEW – Analysis: Which countries have sent the most delegates to COP30? | @rtmcswee Ho Woo Nam Read here: buff.ly/I5pUBHu
Overall totals for delegates from parties, observers and the media for all COPs, as published by the UNFCCC (see this article for more details on the data). Data for COPs 1-29 are the “final” figures, while COP30 data is “provisional”. Chart by Carbon Brief.

ALT Overall totals for delegates from parties, observers and the media for all COPs, as published by the UNFCCC (see this article for more details on the data). Data for COPs 1-29 are the “final” figures, while COP30 data is “provisional”. Chart by Carbon Brief.

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Zeke Hausfather
@hausfath23 Sep 2025
In a UN speech today, President Trump said that "all of these [climate] predictions were wrong". Back in 2019 I led a research effort to digitize old climate model projections and assess how well they did. Turns out they got future warming pretty spot on!
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Simon Evans@DrSimEvans3 Sep 2025
Well this is embarrassing for "newspaper of record" The Times: Its coverage of EVs is the most misleading among UK titles, with 52% of pieces in H1 2024 containing at least one misleading statement (The Daily Telegraph "wins" on volume, with 44 misleading pieces) 1/4
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Zeke Hausfather
@hausfath14 Aug 2025
The recent DOE climate science report misrepresents the work of many researchers. Carbon Brief asked those cited to review the parts of the report where their work was used, and we collectively found 100+ misleading or false statements: interactive.carbonbrief.org/…
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More net-zero misinformation in the @Telegraph It claims that a proposed scheme to put the cost of recycling onto packaging producers, rather than local councils, is a “net-zero glass tax”. It is about waste management, not net-zero. Somehow, this made it onto the frontpage 🤦
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Here's more on the “Packaging extended producer responsibility” scheme: commonslibrary.parliament.uk… I suspect the Telegraph knows that the connection to net-zero is bogus as it only mentions the phrase in its headline & opening line. Link here: telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/06…

Impact of extended producer responsibility for packaging on glass packaging producers

A debate has been scheduled in Westminster Hall for Wednesday 14 May from 2:30pm until 4:00pm on the Impact of extended producer responsibility for packaging on glass packaging producers. The debate...

commonslibrary.parliament.uk
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And then @thetimes, revealing its credulity, has followed with its own piece that does exactly the same thing (just 2 hours later): thetimes.com/uk/environment/…
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Robert McSweeney retweeted
Carbon Brief
@CarbonBrief14 Jun 2025
Chart: The rise, fall and rise of UK nuclear power over eight decades Written by @DrSimEvans. Data analysis by Ho Woo Nam. Visuals by @tomoprater. Read here ➡️ buff.ly/54FJd7w
UK nuclear capacity, 1955-2100, gigawatts. Individual plants are shown separately. Source: World Nuclear Association and Carbon Brief analysis.

ALT UK nuclear capacity, 1955-2100, gigawatts. Individual plants are shown separately. Source: World Nuclear Association and Carbon Brief analysis.

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Carbon Brief
@CarbonBrief10 Jun 2025
NEW – Explainer: How human-caused aerosols are ‘masking’ global warming | @hausfath Read here: buff.ly/46ERb71
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Zeke Hausfather
@hausfath24 Apr 2025
2025 had the second warmest first quarter (Jan-Mar) on record, just a hair behind last year (2024). This is remarkable since 2024 was boosted by a strong El Nino event, while 2025 started off in weak La Nina conditions.
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Tom Gauld@tomgauld5 Apr 2025
My HORRIFYING cartoon for this week’s @GuardianBooks
Title: Modern Folk horrors of the British Isles Five images of various characters: A coven of murderous witches... Who play loud youtube videos on public transport. An ancient malevolent demon... With a three-hour podcast interviewing entrepreneurs. A flock of bloodthirsty ravens... Who think absolutely everything is "Woke". A primordial shambling beast... Wearing a "Make albion great again" baseball cap. A mob of satanic villagers... Who give bad reviews to books they haven't read.

ALT Title: Modern Folk horrors of the British Isles Five images of various characters: A coven of murderous witches... Who play loud youtube videos on public transport. An ancient malevolent demon... With a three-hour podcast interviewing entrepreneurs. A flock of bloodthirsty ravens... Who think absolutely everything is "Woke". A primordial shambling beast... Wearing a "Make albion great again" baseball cap. A mob of satanic villagers... Who give bad reviews to books they haven't read.

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