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I'm Piers Sellers I'm the
Division Director for Earth

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Sciences Division here at NASA
Goddard Space Flight Center it's

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a division of about 1500 people
scientist and engineers who

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study all aspect of the Earth's
system including climate.

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Reporter: Now you've been
studying the Earth for several

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decades now what kind of
changes are you seeing?

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Piers: Well we are seeing that
is NASA and other agencies we're

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seeing huge changes in things
like the ice sheets now we are

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seeing a shrinkage of the Arctic
Ocean ice pack reduction of ice

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on Greenland we are seeing
changes in the vegetation around

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the world we are seeing an
earlier season to the far north

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as the north warms up.

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We are seeing changes in the
temperature of the atmosphere in

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the oceans.

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So there are a lot of changes
they're all consistent with this

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theory of global warm,
it's all self-consistent.

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Reporter: Is it
caused by humans?

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Piers: It's
absolutely caused by humans.

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I'd say that with
very high confidence.

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It's linked closely with the
carbon dioxide that we release

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into the atmosphere from fossil
fuel burning and a little bit to

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methane as well there's bumps
and wiggles on the graph from

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things like volcanoes and
changes of ocean circulation.

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But the general trend of the
increase in temperature is due

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to anthropogenic, that is
man made release of CO2.

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It's us.

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Reporter: 2015 was the warmest
year on record 1 degree over

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pre-industrial times really
doesn't sound like a lot Can you

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tell us or the average person
what is the significance of that

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record?

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Why should they
care about 1 degree?

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Piers: Alright so 2015 was
the warmest year on record from

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about 1890 from the precise
records that we have 2014 was

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the next warmest year 2013
was the next warmest year after

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that.

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Of the last 16 years 15 warmest
years have occurred in the last

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16 years.

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So it's a very strong signal
here so the planet is warming

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up, now with regards to the
point 1 degree centigrade which

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is 1.8 Fahrenheit doesn't seem
like a lot doesn't seem like a

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lot it is a lot when you look
on it on the scale of a planet

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that's a lot of energy You've
heated up the whole planetary

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atmosphere or surface atmosphere
by 1 degree centigrade that's a

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lot of energy it can do a lot,
it can melt a lot of ice, it can

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change weather and it can
change ocean circulations.

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Reporter: So even if you're in
the middle of the country you

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should care about this you're
not on the coast so sea level

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rise my not effect you but other
things will, can you talk about

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that?

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Piers: Yes, for us humans
wondering around 1 degree

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centigrade everyday just take it
in your stride, it doesnÕt make

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any difference to you.

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But if it turns out that that 1
degree centigrade on a planetary

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scale, on the scale of the whole
world changes where the rain

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will fall and where it won't,
where its going to be hot and

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dry, where is going to be a good
place to grow food or have water

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resources, then it makes
a heck of a difference.

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Reporter: You said that 2015 was
the death of denial, what do you

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mean by that?

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Piers: I've come to that
conclusion after quite a lot of

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thought.

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The death of denial, the whole
business of tiring to pretend

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that this global warming is not
happening I think the nail is

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finally in the coffin and the
reason for that is the majority

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of the world leaders and their
representatives who are meeting

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in climate conferences accept
the scientific evidence as the

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basis for trying to
put together policy.

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So when you point to the big
stack of documents scientist put

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together that says you should
not try to get to much warmer

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then we are now, 2 degrees
centigrade is the limit from

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pre-industrial temperatures we
get policy makers buying into

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that I think that is
the death of denial.

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People of embracing science
and the reality of the message.

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Reporter: You've been very vocal
and passionate about talking

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about climate change, what is
the main message you want people

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to understand?

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Piers: A couple of messages, one
is that it's real and can't be

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avoided, there will be changes
and the other thing is this is

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not a hopeless
case by any means.

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We can get ourselves out
of trouble, it will take

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significant effort and
application of technology and

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some policy investments but it's
by no means hopeless at all.

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There is no reason that our
future shouldn't be better then

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our past.

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So I'm optimistic as
long as we get on with it.

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Reporter: What makes you so
optimistic that we can tackle

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this crisis?

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Piers: I think there a number
of reasons to be cheerful.

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When ever there has been a sever
crisis to society, in particular

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in the past 100 years, you've
seen eventually a pretty good

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response by policy makers,
industrialist, technologist,

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inventors, all smart people,
eventually they line up and work

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together.

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World War 2 is a classic
example; technology was advanced

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very rapidly to deal with a
threat to the world order and we

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triumphed if you like so I
think there are reasons to be

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optimistic.

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Humans generally fight
their way out of trouble.

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Reporter: What type of
technological advances do we

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need to, if not solve this
crisis at least try to fix it?

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Piers: The technical answers
are fairly straightforward and

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they're obtainable even with
current technology so moving

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from a carbon based economy
to something else is going to

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require, it could happen very
gradually if we didn't do much

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about it, with the proper
investments and incentives you

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could do this quite quickly.

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Move over to new sources of
energy, solar, nuclear, wind,

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and particularly electrification
of the transport system.

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I'm convinced that in 10-15
years we'll all be driving

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around in little
electric cars, very low impact.

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So what is interesting about all
this is we can achieve the goal

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of reducing carbon emissions
without putting a huge ding in

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people's quality of life I don't
see this one leads to the other.

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I think people can continue to
enjoy interesting, comfortable

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lives with the new technology
and we lower our carbon

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footprint.

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Reporter: What do you say to
people who say, we give up,

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we're to far gone to do
anything about this?

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Piers: That's totally defeatist.

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That's totally defeatist and
that's not useful to anybody.

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So now we are in a tricky
position that is humanity is in

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a tricky position now's
the time to start thinking.

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Now's the time to really start
working on solutions and there

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are many solutions out there.

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There's not a single solution,
there are many solutions that we

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have to work on.

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It's all doable.

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Reporter: Let me
circle back a little bit.

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Talk about your work here and
talking about climate modeling

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it's very challenging, lot of
factors involved, what insight

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of NASA's effort accomplished
with these models and what

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challenges still remain?

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Piers: NASA's made a huge
contribution to the whole

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business of climate modeling,
especially NASA Goddard Space

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Flight Center.

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So there are various tribes
of scientist involved here.

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There's the tribe that actually
makes these climate models on

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the super computers, test
them, run them, and look at the

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output.

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But a model without verification
is pretty much useless so we

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have another tribe of people who
take satellite observations and

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analyze other types of
observations who provides the

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constant checks on the modelist
so the modelist and observers

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are always talking with each
other and over the last 30 years

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that I've been involved in the
business I've seen tremendous

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progress in the capability and
the credibility of these models

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it's been night and day.

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Reporter: Can you talk about the
changes since you've been here

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at Goddard?

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What is the science that's
changed that we've learned?

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Piers: The change that I've seen
for myself when I arrived here

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at NASA Goddard in 1982 as a
postdoc straight off the boat

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from London pretty much;
we had Landsat, we had some

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meteorological satellites,
and the French had a satellite

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called SPOT that was
sort of like Landsat.

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That was about it.

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That was really about it and it
was very difficult to do much

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earth science with
that little fleet.

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Come to the end of 1990's we
launched this huge constellation

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of Earth observing satellites
and that was also supported by

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recruitment a bunch of
scientist to look at the data.

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So there's been an absolute
revolution in the last 20 years

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I mean really a science
revolution in our understanding

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of the Earth.

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Its been going from very
primitive models and a very

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primitive understanding to a
very detailed, verifiable, see

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it everyday, model it
everyday capability.

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It's been an enormous jump in
progress and I feel myself very

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lucky to have seen it from the
beginning to where we are now.

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It's been really exciting ride.

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Reporter: Why is it important
for NASA study the Earth from

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space?

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Piers: Well NASA has found that
orbit is the exact the best spot

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from which to observe the Earth.

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The views you get from orbit,
here's me actually outside the

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ship looking back at the
Earth, are very powerful.

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You can see thousands of miles
in every direction, you're going

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around the Earth at 5 miles a
second so you can go around the

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whole world and map the
whole world in a day using a

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satellite.

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So the combination of being
able to see the whole world,

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wall-to-wall, everyday with the
same instrument is tremendously

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powerful scientifically and it's
absolutely the cheapest, best

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way to study the Earth.

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Reporter: So you are one of a
handful of people to actually

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see the Earth from space, can
you talk a little bit about what

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that experience was like?

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Piers: For me personally seeing
the Earth from space was very

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revealing and beautiful
all at the same time.

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It's beautiful as it would be
for about anybody just to see

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the planet from above, the
curve of the Earth, to be moving

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around this great big blue
ball where we all live, it's

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incredibly beautiful.

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But as a scientist all the
things that I've studied in

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theory and in the laboratory
and simulations, to see them for

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real from orbit, like a whole
hurricane or ice packs or forest

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or mountains to see it all from
a single glance, it put flesh on

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the science bones if
you'd like for me.

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It made if real.

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You know one of the things that
came out of this is I'm much

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fonder of the Earth now having
left it and looked back at it.

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It's like leaving home,
I'm much fonder of it now.

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My name is Piers Sellers, I'm a
climate scientist here at NASA's

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Goddard Space Flight
Center and a former astronaut.

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Reporter: You were in space 3
times, how did looking down at

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the Earth change your
perception of Earth, or did it?

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Did it seem more
fragile looking at it?

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Piers: Looking at the Earth from
orbit, particularly looking at

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the horizon did bring to mind
how thin the atmosphere is.

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It's like an onionskin around
this great big ball

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of the Earth.

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It's very very thin.

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So that really brought home to
me how thin of volume of air

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that we are all sharing and
breathing, polluting if you

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like, and how easily it's
affected by what we do.

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That brought it right home.

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Reporter: Did it change your
passion for wanting to get the

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message out that climate change
is happening and we need to

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address it?

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Piers: Not at all because I
was passionate about it before I

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went so maybe a little bit
more motivated, that's all.

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Reporter: What is your proudest
moment working as a NASA

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Scientist?

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Piers: I can't pick out a single
great moment; to be honest it's

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amazing to just see the session
of triumphs particularly in the

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science over the last 20 years
one building on another so it's

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been a terrific ride.

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Almost everyday someone will
walk into my office and tell me

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something new, some
insight that is exciting.

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So it's been a continuous rush.

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Reporter: Now you said in your
New York Times article that you

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wanted to come straight back to
work, why do you love what you

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do as much as you do?

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Piers: I was accused of several
people of having a chronic lack

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of imagination, couldn't think
of anything better to do then

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come back to work.

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But the work is
really interesting.

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I mean the reason I got into
the science in the first place

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because it's fascinating but
it's really important too.

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I mean it's really really
important, for everybody,

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for all 7 billion of us.

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So I feel not only this is how
I'd like to spend my time but

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also kind of a responsibility.

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NASA spent 30 years training me
if you like to do this job so I

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feel some
responsibility to keep doing it.

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Reporter: You talk to kids a
lot, what do you tell kids about

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where we are and climate change?

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What are your hopes
for the next generation?

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Piers: Oh, upbeat
for the most part.

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If you take people in their
teens they are perfectly capable

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of understanding the changes
that are going on and that they

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will have to deal with them more
then people like me at my age

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obviously they get to inherit
the Earth that we leave them.

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I try to tell them that these
problems are being looked at,

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they are being addressed, not as
fast as we'd probably like right

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now and it will be a continuing
work ready to solve a problem

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and some of it
will be up to them.

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You know, them
seem to absorb it ok.

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Reporter: You learned to fly at
a young age, 

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what inspired youto do that?

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To want to learn how to fly and
what inspired you to

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become an astronaut?

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Piers: I can't imagine why
anybody wouldn't want to learn

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how to fly but
that's my mindset.

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I was at school and they had the
Royal Air Force, I was in the

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United Kingdom, the Royal Air
Force had this great program

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where they teach you to fly
gliders solo at 16 then fly

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powered aircraft at 17.

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I've been flying
ever since then.

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So interest in fly and interest
in space went hand in hand,

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it's all the same community
of people how do this.

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So I've always been drawn to
it and still enjoy it today.

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I love to fly.

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Reporter: What about studying
earth science, what prompted you

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to pick that field?

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Piers: I really started to get
interested in earth science when

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there was this gap that I found
myself able to fill and that was

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the gap between biology and
climate so I started out as a

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biologist and then moved over
to climate studies and realized

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that there was quite a
strong link to the way the whole

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Earth's biosphere works and its
impacts on climate were strong

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so not many people were looking
at that time so it was an

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opportunity to investigate
something new and I got sucked

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all the way in never
managed to get out again.

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Its been a lot of fun.

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Reporter: You've been very
optimistic about climate change,

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what can we as humans do adapt?

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Piers: Well if you look at
history have done a great job of

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adapting to changing
circumstances and actually

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improving their
lot in the process.

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You go all the way back to
transition from being a bunch of

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very sparse, hunter-gatherers to
becoming an agricultural society

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and that was a huge change.

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It allowed the population to
increase massively; it allowed

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cities and the growth of
civilization so things go better

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for humanity really quickly.

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Then going from an agrarian
culture to an industrial culture

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in the 1750's another big step
change, another big improvement.

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Now we have the modern world,
the modern world is marvelous

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compared to being a caveman and
I'd think you'd have to agree,

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you know?

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Certainly a lot cleaner.

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Now we got another change facing
us, it's a relatively

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small change.

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The way we use energy and the
way we store energy, the way we

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use energy, and so that's a
relatively minor change in the

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great scheme of things but
looking back at history the way

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we've copped with previous
challenges, I don't see this as

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being impossible at all.

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Reporter: So it's just
another step we have to take?

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Piers: It's just another step we
have to take as humans and we've

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done it before.

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Reporter: Why are you so
passionate about this issue?

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Piers: Well I've very interested
in the science for one and you

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know the whole time I've been
working at NASA I've been amazed

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at how the gains we've made
through all the technology

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particularly the NASA
has thrown into the mix.

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So it's really interesting
but I think on a broader level

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responsibility as a scientist
so I see things are happening I

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understand some idea about how
the future is going to develop

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00:18:35,581 --> 00:18:38,617
so I feel some responsibility
to society to report that to the

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public and policy makers to make
it crystal clear to people what

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is going on.

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Reporter: So how has your cancer
diagnosis changed your outlook

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00:18:46,826 --> 00:18:48,527
on climate change issue?

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Piers: Well for me personally
realizing I have rather less

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time to deal with this, trying
to get more done in the time

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available.

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So I'm actually working at 20
times the normal rate and

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 it's still fun.

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It's just concentrating my
efforts on what's more important

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I guess.

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Reporter: Talk a little
bit about your childhood.

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Why did you want
to be an astronaut?

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00:19:14,086 --> 00:19:17,923
Piers: Well I was lucky enough
to grow up during the 1960's

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during the race to the moon
so I saw the whole thing,

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00:19:20,459 --> 00:19:23,095
the Russians, the Americans you
know, trying to get to the 

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moon first.

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It was tremendously exciting.

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I mean everything, the lunar
landing, Apollo 13 the rescue,

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all of that stuff was
just wonderful and it got me

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interested in science, it got me
interested in aviation, learning

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to fly and it got me
interested in NASA.

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So I thought the whole show was
put on just for me to motivate

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me in my career.

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I found out that wasn't true
but it might as well been.

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Reporter: You've talked about
the changes you've seen since

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you were born.

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Where do you think we
will be in 50 years?

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Piers: In 50 year's time, I
think we will probably be a

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00:20:03,869 --> 00:20:06,972
little bit warmer then the
2 degrees centigrade we set

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00:20:06,972 --> 00:20:09,008
ourselves,
hopefully not too much.

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I think there will be a massive
change in the way people live.

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I'm hoping that the bottom third
of the population of the world,

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who are very poor right
now, will be a lot less poor.

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We'll be able to transfer
technology and wealth to them

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to make their lives better.

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It could be a much better world
and it should be a much better

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world in 50 years time.