Asymmetry in the climate–carbon cycle response to positive and negative CO₂ emissions

Nature Climate Change, Published online: 21 June 2021; doi:10.1038/s41558-021-01061-2

It is commonly assumed that the climate response to CO2 removals is equal in magnitude and opposite in sign to the response to CO2 emissions. The response, however, is asymmetric, meaning that offsetting CO2 emissions with equal removals could lead to a different climate than avoiding the emissions.