Forward to the Past---Like 30 Million Years

Based on measurements at various locations all over the world, climate scientists found that that CO2 levels rose substantially in 2005, exceeding most recorded single year changes.

The BBC story continues:

The chief carbon dioxide analyst for Noaa says the latest data confirms a worrying trend that recent years have, on average, recorded double the rate of increase from just 30 years ago.

We don't see any sign of a decrease; in fact, we're seeing the opposite, the rate of increase is accelerating," Dr Pieter Tans told the BBC.

The precise level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is of global concern because climate scientists fear certain thresholds may be "tipping points" that trigger sudden changes.

The UK government's chief scientific adviser, Professor Sir David King, said the new data highlighted the importance of taking urgent action to limit carbon emissions.

"Today we're over 380 ppm," he said. "That's higher than we've been for over a million years, possibly 30 million years. Mankind is changing the climate".

30 million years ago was earth's last major climate change, from very hot and tropical to the cooler temperatures that allowed for the evolution of mammals into the species we know today, including primates. Humans have never existed on a planet like earth was, before 30 million years ago.

UPDATE: NASA confirms recent studies showing rapid melting of glaciers in Greenland and Antarctica, due to global heating. And the Independent reports: Scientists are now convinced that Arctic sea ice is showing signs of both a winter and a summer decline that could indicate a major acceleration in its long-term rate of disappearance. The greatest fear is that an environmental "positive feedback" has kicked in, where global warming melts ice which in itself causes the seas to warm still further as more sunlight is absorbed by a dark ocean rather than being reflected by white ice.