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The world is getting warmer, countering the doubts of climate change sceptics about the validity of some of the scientific evidence, according to the most comprehensive independent review of historical temperature records to date. Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, found several key issues that sceptics claim can skew global warming figures had no meaningful effect.

What a difference a year makes. In February 2010, climate sceptics were crowing about apparent admissions from Phil Jones at the Climate Research Unit (CRU) in Norwich, UK, that warming trends over the period 1995 to 2009 were "not statistically significant"

Australia is often cited as being particularly vulnerable to climate change, with projections of longer droughts punctuated by increasingly horrendous floods. In Western Australia, rainfall has already declined by 20%, and the tragic "Black Saturday" bush fires that claimed 173 lives in 2009 were amplified by an unprecedented heatwave. It is less well known that Australia is also a coal "superpower," being the world's largest exporter of this dirtiest of all fossil fuels.

This question and answer is part of the Guardian's ultimate climate change FAQ* See all questions and answers* Read about the project A changing climate isn't inherently bad, and commentators who are sceptical about the risks posed by global warming often point to the benefits that higher temperatures could bring - such as longer growing seasons in cool countries and more efficient shipping routes through an ice-free Arctic.

The climate debate rages on without progress, but a 'meeting of moderate minds' might be the answer