The RCP8.5 Future of Sub-Saharan Africa and High Northern Latitudes by 2100 1. Introduction 1.1 RCPs and RCP8.5 RCPs is short for Representative Concentration Pathways, which are a set of four new scenarios defined by their approximate total radiative forcing in 2100 relative 1750: 2.6 W/m2 for RCP2.6, 4.5 W/m2 for RCP4.5, 6.0 W/m2 for RCP6.0, and 8.5 W/m2 for RCP8.5, for the Fifth Assessment Report of IPCC. RCP2.6 represents a mitigation scenario resulting in a very low forcing level. RCP4.5…