Cryosphere faces permanent damage when world overshoots 1.5C, scientists warn

UN-backed report finds even temporary rises above Paris agreement target could cause harm to glaciers and polar ice sheets

Earth's icy regions face such dangerous melting that global heating should be brought back below 1C after an inevitable period of overshooting global temperature targets, a UN report has found.

Permanent and widespread losses of snow and ice expose a persistent myth" that overshooting the 1.5C target of the Paris climate agreement - to 2C or 3C - could be manageable or even preferable to urgent cuts to emissions, the report found.