Overview

• Researchers estimate that cuts to sulfate aerosols in East Asia since 2010 have revealed about 0.07°C of additional global warming.
• The study draws on eight climate models and updated emissions data to capture a roughly 75% reduction in regional sulfate emissions.
• By omitting recent East Asian pollution cuts, the IPCC’s 2021 assessment of aerosol cooling underestimated this unmasking effect.
• The acceleration in warming is expected to slow as sulfate aerosol levels reach a new steady state.
• China’s aggressive air quality measures, which once addressed pollution responsible for about one million premature deaths annually, underlie these findings.