A researcher known as the “father of climate science” has compared the UK’s fracking programme to Donald Trump’s environmental agenda.

Ex-Nasa scientist Professor James Hansen also called on the British government to withdraw its support for the controversial gas extraction technique.

In a letter to energy minister Claire Perry, Professor Hansen warned that supporting fracking is a grave mistake that will contribute to “climate breakdown”.

Separately, he told The Observer the UK was joining Mr Trump and ignoring science as it goes “full throttle ahead with the worst fossil fuels”.

“The science is crystal clear, we need to phase out fossil fuels starting with the most damaging, the ‘unconventional’ fossil fuels such as tar sands and ‘fracking’,” he said.

Professor Hansen’s comparison with the famously climate-sceptic US president came after a critical week for both climate science and the British fracking industry.

10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Show all 10 1 /10 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A group of emperor penguins face a crack in the sea ice, near McMurdo Station, Antarctica Kira Morris 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Floods destroyed eight bridges and ruined crops such as wheat, maize and peas in the Karimabad valley in northern Pakistan, a mountainous region with many glaciers. In many parts of the world, glaciers have been in retreat, creating dangerously large lakes that can cause devastating flooding when the banks break. Climate change can also increase rainfall in some areas, while bringing drought to others. Hira Ali 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Smoke – filled with the carbon that is driving climate change – drifts across a field in Colombia. Sandra Rondon 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Amid a flood in Islampur, Jamalpur, Bangladesh, a woman on a raft searches for somewhere dry to take shelter. Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable places in the world to sea level rise, which is expected to make tens of millions of people homeless by 2050. Probal Rashid 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Sindh province in Pakistan has experienced a grim mix of two consequences of climate change. “Because of climate change either we have floods or not enough water to irrigate our crop and feed our animals,” says the photographer. “Picture clearly indicates that the extreme drought makes wide cracks in clay. Crops are very difficult to grow.” Rizwan Dharejo 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Hanna Petursdottir examines a cave inside the Svinafellsjokull glacier in Iceland, which she said had been growing rapidly. Since 2000, the size of glaciers on Iceland has reduced by 12 per cent. Tom Schifanella 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A river once flowed along the depression in the dry earth of this part of Bangladesh, but it has disappeared amid rising temperatures. Abrar Hossain 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A shepherd moves his herd as he looks for green pasture near the village of Sirohi in Rajasthan, northern India. The region has been badly affected by heatwaves and drought, making local people nervous about further predicted increases in temperature. Riddhima Singh Bhati 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A factory in China is shrouded by a haze of air pollution. The World Health Organisation has warned such pollution, much of which is from the fossil fuels that cause climate change, is a “public health emergency”. Leung Ka Wa 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Water levels in reservoirs, like this one in Gers, France, have been getting perilously low in areas across the world affected by drought, forcing authorities to introduce water restrictions. Mahtuf Ikhsan

Many interpreted this as meaning that governments must immediately focus on switching from fossil fuels such as the shale gas obtained from fracking to renewable energy sources.

At the same time, oil and gas company Cuadrilla was set to begin its first fracking operation in seven years on Saturday, only for the launch to be delayed by poor weather conditions.

The government announced plans in May to accelerate its fracking programme, and a letter sent by Ms Perry that surfaced this week suggested ministers were considering relaxing the laws that halt fracking when it causes minor earthquakes.

A copy of Professor Hansen’s letter was obtained by the Campaign to Protect Rural England, one of the many green groups that took the IPCC report as a cue to condemn the UK’s support for fracking.

“If the UK were to join the US by developing gas fields at this point in time it will lock in the methane problem for decades,” wrote Professor Hansen in his letter to Ms Perry, noting that fracking would make it difficult to meet the country’s climate targets.

“The fossil fuel companies are well aware methane is a potent greenhouse gas, and yet they seem willing to continue on a path which can have disastrous consequences for our grandchildren.”

Fracking has been condemned by groups ranging from scientists to Conservative MPs, and the most recent government polling suggests only 18 per cent of the British public supports it.

How Fracking works

Whenever new fracking operations have been mooted they have faced fierce local opposition and protest. Last month, three activists were jailed for climbing on to lorries carrying drilling equipment at a site near Blackpool.

Despite this resistance, the government has consistently stated that “safe and environmentally sound” shale gas extraction will play a vital role in the country’s future energy provision.

It has also emphasised the energy security provided by a new domestic source of gas, and the potential for new job creation the fracking industry brings.

Government advisers the Committee on Climate Change have noted that natural gas can play a role in helping the transition to renewable energy sources and slashing carbon emissions.