Carbon dioxide levels hit landmark at 415 ppm, highest in human history

Carbon dioxide levels in Earth's atmosphere hit a stunning milestone over the weekend.

Data from the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii showed that carbon dioxide levels surpassed 415 parts per million Friday.

"We don't know a planet like this," Eric Holthaus, a meteorologist and writer at Grist, an online environmental magazine, posted on Twitter.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations have skyrocketed far higher than any levels in more than 800,000 years, according to data from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California-San Diego, and levels have not been this high for millions of years, Holthaus said.

Read the story from USA Today by Ryan W. Miller and Doyle Rice - “Carbon dioxide levels hit landmark at 415 ppm, highest in human history.”