What zettajoules reveal about Earth's growing energy imbalance

Researchers now express Earth's excess heat in zettajoules to show its true scale. A zettajoule equals 10^21 joules. New analyses show vast amounts of excess heat stored across the oceans, atmosphere, land and ice. The rate of heat accumulation is accelerating, committing the planet to more warming, higher seas, and stronger extremes without rapid emissions cuts.