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Comments 107201 to 107250:

  1. Climate Cherry Pickers: Falling sea levels in 2010
    OK, I really should not be trying to do this when I am fighting a bug. The reason for me saying that should be obvious from the above data.
  2. It's a 1500 year cycle
    Dr. S Fred Singer should have check his work before spreading it. There is absolutely no empirical evidence that 1,500 year ocean cycle is causing warmining. When was the last time Dr. S Fred Singer published original research in a peer-reviewed journal?
  3. Climate Cherry Pickers: Falling sea levels in 2010
    Albatross #90 That would tend to indicate that a linear fit is better, although I wouldn't mind looking at the residuals to confirm that :) Either way it looks like BP's analysis is bogus. Best bet is to save the graphs as png or gif files and follow the instructions here
  4. Climate Cherry Pickers: Falling sea levels in 2010
    In 90 I should have said that: "For the quadratic fit the slope of the 95% PI envelope increases with time".
  5. Roger A. Wehage at 10:30 AM on 10 October 2010
    Newcomers, Start Here
    Some excellent points above. John Cook summarized another source of the problem here. According to John's post, about three quarters of the news media and three quarters of the general public are not convinced or deny that humans are causing global warming. Since the numbers match so closely, I tend to think that public opinion is heavily influenced by the news media. News is just another part of our entertainment, so we tend to watch the type of news we agree with and enjoy. And if our newscasters are are not convinced or deny that humans are causing global warming, then it is likely that we are not convinced or deny that humans are causing global warming. Another contributor to the problem, at least in the United States, is that We Don't Care about important national and world issues, but only those little things that make us happy and save us money.
  6. Carbon Dioxide - Everyone's Favorite Pollutant
    A person can die from having less than 1% of their body weight in water in the wrong place. A pint of water in the lungs is called drowning.
  7. Climate Cherry Pickers: Falling sea levels in 2010
    KL and BP, It seems to be lost on both of you, but this thread is about Goddard cherry picking and misrepresenting the global SL data. Yet all I see by you are attempts to obfuscate and detract from that. I would like to know for the record, do you condone Goddard misleading people and cherry-picking. Is that acceptable to you? Anyhow, BP has failed to provide some stats on his regression. It is an academic exercise, b/c that polynomial fit is likely not to be valid much beyond the training window.... Also, please tell me that extrapolating that polynomial curve out to 2100 was a poor joke.
  8. Climate Cherry Pickers: Falling sea levels in 2010
    KL #87 It's naive because it doesn't attempt to account for any reasons for the perceived deceleration (e.g. the recent solar minimum), or attempt to ascertain any improvements that a non-linear fit provides compared to a linear fit. Again, if you're going to try to make strong claims about this kind of thing, your eyeball isn't good enough, you've got to use something that's more objective.
  9. How do we know CO2 is causing warming?
    TimTheToolMan at 09:44 AM, the experiment actually shows an effect. What is there to show that that effect is the result of one particular mechanism to the exclusion of all others?
  10. How do we know CO2 is causing warming?
    I agree with you Doug but you're missing the point entirely. You're right in that the experiment only shows the mechanism. It absolutely does. But what we need now is to take that further and show that the mechanism actually works in terms of its ability to heat the ocean at the rate observed. More specifically does the change in heat flux at the skin as a result of Anthropogenic CO2 account for sufficient decrease in ocean heat to account for the observed ocean warming rates? AFAIK, This question cannot be answered by science at the moment.
  11. How do we know CO2 is causing warming?
    TTTM OK, let's try another analogy. You say clouds are a strong influence and CO2 is small, and thát's a problem. Seeing as we're talking about heating, let's look at cooking. We could knock up some soup in a matter of minutes on the top of the stove. Or we chuck everything in a slow cooker, go off for a day's work and come back 8 or 10 hours later, job done. In both cases, the food is cooked and at serving temperature. All the paper tells us is that if you apply heat to the ocean it will warm. Just as an appliance salesperson can tell us that applying heat to food will cook it. You seem to be wanting the salesperson to become a chef telling us all the different methods of cooking various foods.
  12. How do we know CO2 is causing warming?
    TimTheToolMan at 09:07 AM, that effect is very much smaller indeed, the slope of the relationship was determined as being 0.002ºK (W/m2)-1. When such small values are being put forward, then I believe that it is incumbent upon those conducting the study to similarly explore and account for all other processes that occur simultaneously that might contribute similarly small values, or perhaps larger values either positively or negatively to the nett result, one such example being evaporation which I believe would be very relevant to the study under discussion.
  13. How do we know CO2 is causing warming?
    Tim, I suggest you read the Science of Doom post Does Back Radiation Heat the Ocean? Part 1". But it looks like you'll have to wait for Part 2 to get the full answer you're looking for.
  14. It's cooling
    Thanks very much for that, Best regards, Richo.
  15. How do we know CO2 is causing warming?
    "Can anybody else think of a way to explain this to Tim? " I agree with you Doug but you're missing the point entirely. The point is that nobody has investigated whether the change in fux can account for the ocean heat loss observed recently and blamed on CO2. These are the numbers needed to validate AGW theory as far as CO2 heating the oceans goes. The point about cloud LW vs CO2 LW is only to point out that the effect they've measured is as a result of a large effect and the effect of CO2 will be much smaller.
  16. How do we know CO2 is causing warming?
    You know, when everyone agrees on something, and you don't, it's usually the sign you're either a genius or you're wrong - and you're not a genius.
  17. How do we know CO2 is causing warming?
    @TTTM: "You're both missing the point." No, you are missing the point. The article isn't about the amount of warming, but about the regulatory mechanism the skin layer has for IR radiation transfer to the water below it. "If the amount of IR is reduced to 1/33 as is the effect of CO2, then the amount of warming will likely be be similarly reduced." Indeed, but - as we keep telling you - that is not the point of the article. "It is the amount of warming of the skin that directly relates to any decrease in ocean heat loss decrease due to altered heat flux which is their theory." That sentence is nearly incomprehensible. You should try to clarify your own mind before trying to formulate your arguments. "And you haven't even considered the fact that this heat loss hasn't been quantitatively considered and that is the point of the theory." No, the point of the article is to show the mechanisms that allow LW radiation to warm the ocean despite the fact that infrared radiation is stopped by the skin layer. At this point, it's clear you do *not* want to understand. As for me, I will not respond until you answer this simple question: why you say you had no doubt your argument would fail to convince me. Please elaborate.
  18. Newcomers, Start Here
    Rogers devilish advocate @44 said, Maybe global warming did have something to do with Katrina or Lake Mead or Pakistan, but I wasn't there. I chose these examples because it seems to me that they all have potential financial costs for the American economy. (The, perhaps rather fanciful, case for Pakistan is made here, for example) However the idea that doing nothing results in a cost, is not an intuitive idea, and so I too am somewhat pessimistic about wholesale public acceptance of AGW. I think education, such as sites like SkS, can help - if only by a "trickle down" effect. (Personally, I think that some of the "robust" conversations with contrarians on this site, whilst well intentioned, often end up hardening their already entrenched, if illogical, positions and I have tried, unsuccessfully, to think of a better approach). Sadly, I think appeals to the future good (such as the excellent addendum to my previous post by Daniel) do not enthuse the public (especially in a fragile economy); Doug @45 is on stronger ground arguing the national and personal interest. Ultimately, and sadly, I think it will only be a big event (such as summer ice disappearing from the Arctic) that will grab the wider public's attention, and change peoples minds.
  19. Newcomers, Start Here
    Roger, You paint an interesting, albeit gloomy, picture. "Maybe global warming did have something to do with __ or __ or __, but I wasn't there." Does this person believe that the only things that happen are wherever he or she is? Nothing else matters? I wasn't at Pearl Harbor or Normandy or Hiroshima, but I believe they happened. (Rather than continue with the awkward 3rd person, I'll switch to 'you,' realizing that we're still talking about some hypothetical 3rd party). "People shouldn't be associating global warming with occasional high temperatures, rainfall, or droughts." Yeah, they should: If one frames the question slightly differently: "Would an event like the Moscow heat wave have occurred if carbon dioxide levels had remained at pre-industrial levels," the answer, Hansen asserts, is clear: "Almost certainly not." The frequency of extreme warm anomalies increases disproportionately as global temperature rises. "Were global temperature not increasing, the chance of an extreme heat wave such as the one Moscow experienced, though not impossible, would be small," Hansen says. "don't know anything about El Nino and La Nina, but experts say ..." And you believe those experts, as opposed to the experts who say its a more global problem. Wouldn't it be sensible to check out for yourself what these experts are saying? Because if you don't, I wouldn't go out to buy a car if I were you. "I'm a Patriotic American ... the government shouldn't be wasting my money or telling me what to do about something they know nothing about. But ..." And isn't that the crux of the issue? A true patriot would be concerned with something larger than himself. The welfare of the country as a whole, perhaps? Or beyond? See this essay, from a Fox News personality no less, for some examples of the real concerns of a patriot. We're in this mess because we've said 'I only care about what's happening to me' for far too long.
  20. How do we know CO2 is causing warming?
    You're both missing the point. If you look at the graph reposted by Doug you can see an amount of warming of the skin dependent on the amount of IR. It varies between about 0.1C and 0.3C. This is what they measured using 100W of downward LW radiation from clouds. If the amount of IR is reduced to 1/33 as is the effect of CO2, then the amount of warming will likely be be similarly reduced. It is the amount of warming of the skin that directly relates to any decrease in ocean heat loss decrease due to altered heat flux which is their theory. And you haven't even considered the fact that this heat loss hasn't been quantitatively considered and that is the point of the theory.
  21. It's the ocean
    At some point you're going to find it irresistible to use Google Scholar, Karamanski. Going directly to the well is much more efficient than relying on generalists such as myself to function as proxies hauling teaspoons of information. Plus, why trust me when you can eliminate a layer of fallible human nature and go straight to researchers themselves?
  22. It's the ocean
    Are variations in the Atlantic meriodional overturning circulation driven by the imput of fresh water from the Arctic? Keenlyside et al 2008 did not state what the drivers for a weakening of the Atlantic meriodional overturning were, the paper just used historical analogs of certain regions of the North Atlantic and extrapolated current conditions using climate models. Comparing Keenlyside et al 2008 and the article you provided, the mechanism described in Keenlyside's paper seem to be cyclical on multidecal timescales, while the ocean conveyer discussed in the article you provided is changed by an external factor rather than internal variability. Are the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation and the Great Ocean Conveyor interelated?
  23. Eric (skeptic) at 05:43 AM on 10 October 2010
    The value of coherence in science
    Thanks Doug, I appreciate your feedback (no pun intended). Left my internet dongle at work but I downloaded the first paper to read offline. The second timed out so I will try somewhere else later.
  24. Newcomers, Start Here
    There's real value in remembering that folks may have more than one reason for tackling a problem. Here at SkS we have a few followers who're not particularly concerned about global warming but are quite clued in about the parlous state we'll be in when we've burned or otherwise depleted our endowment of liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons. A circumspect patriot looking forward to a prosperous future for America will include imagining means for how that future will be provided with agile transport and other things presently dependent on fossil fuels, particularly the easily portable types.
  25. Roger A. Wehage at 05:20 AM on 10 October 2010
    Newcomers, Start Here
    Well if "global warming" is responsible for a specific autumn weekends weather, why is it not be responsible for Katrina or the Lake Mead drought or floods in Pakistan ? Let me play the devil's advocate for a moment. And please understand that the following scenario does not reflect my attitude toward global warming. Maybe global warming did have something to do with Katrina or Lake Mead or Pakistan, but I wasn't there. People shouldn't be associating global warming with occasional high temperatures, rainfall, or droughts. What about the 11 straight days of record high temperatures in central Illinois back in the middle of July, 1936? Peoria, Illinois had some of its highest temperatures ever recorded, up to 113°F. Temperatures around here haven't exceeded 95°F in years. So did they have global warming 75 years ago too? Yes, parts of the Midwest have had significant rain the past two years, and we've had equally wet seasons before. But we've now had almost no rain the past six weeks, and little is forecast for the coming weeks. Is global warming causing this too? I've seen much worse droughts than what we are heading into now. I don't know anything about El Nino and La Nina, but experts say they are responsible for our changing climate conditions, not global warming. And there's nothing we can do about it. I'm a Patriotic American, and I generally don't go around telling people that the government shouldn't be wasting my money or telling me what to do about something they know nothing about. But I've had enough. Related to global warming, it is likely that for a long time to come, uninformed public attitude will carry much more clout than frantic scientific outcries.
  26. It's the ocean
    Karamanski, surface temperatures of the North Atlantic have a powerful influence on climate adjacent to the North Atlantic. There's a useful article here from Woods Hole providing a general explanation. It's a bit old, but it provides lots of search terms for following things forward.
  27. The first global warming skeptic
    Remember that a 1% increase in mean global temperature would be just under 3 C*, which is about half the difference between an ice age and today. So a 1% change could still be very important to us! (ofc, you need positive feedback to get the 1% reaction, but articles on here go through that pretty well too) *global temperature averages to something like 293 K iirc, so 10% more is 2.93 K = just under 3 C
  28. It's the sun
    @Ken: "I notice that none of ya'll (Ned KR, kdkd) seem to accept my basic point that the area under ALL the forcing curves represents the total energy gained or lost by the Earth system." That's because the graph shows values starting from a relative reference point, and not an absolute level. You've been told this many times, and yet you refuse to hear it. This suggests you are not interested in debating, but instead pushing your point of view without addressing any challenges to it.
  29. Carbon Dioxide - Everyone's Favorite Pollutant
    @RSVP: we already have a word for "too much water", it is called flooding.
  30. Global warming is accelerating the global water cycle
    @fydijkstra, I have responded to your false claim that there has been no warming since 1998 here.
  31. It hasn't warmed since 1998
    This is a response to fydijkstra in another thread, where he claimed there has not been any warming since 1998. fydijkstra, there has been warming since 1998, as this graph demonstrates: Second, 1998 was an exceptionally warm year. Using it as a starting point to determine a trend is cherry-picking at its best (not to mention the fact that the time frame is too short to indicate statistical significance). In spite of this, the graphs still show modest warming. However, look at what happens if we measure trends right before or after 1998: It's clear that starting in 1998 gives an erroneous idea of the actual temperature trends, which is why contrarians like to do so. That is what we call cherry-picking.
  32. How do we know CO2 is causing warming?
    @TTTM: Okay, I'll give this one more try, but it's really starting to sound as if you *don't* want to understand. "I have read it and there is no analysis of how increased downward LW radiation from CO2 effects the amount of energy the ocean radiates. For that matter there isn't even an analysis of increased LW radiation from clouds and what effect that has on decreased radiation from the ocean." That's because LW from clouds and LW from CO2 are identical in nature, but that's not important because that wasn't the point of the article. "The only relevence to intensity of radiation is as relates to the fact the experiment measures SSTs relating to 100W downward LW radiation whereas CO2 only supplies 3W. The experiment therefore exagerates the effect." That's because the experiment isn't trying to measure the effect of CO2, but simply trying to show the mechanism by which IR (i.e. LW) radiation heats the upper ocean, even if IR radiation is stopped by the skin layer. Let me repeat so you can understand: the goal of the experiment was NOT to determined the amplitude of IR warming (from CO2 or any other source), but the mechanism by which the actual infrared radiation manages to heat the upper ocean under the skin layer. The fact that clouds send down more IR than CO2 only makes it easier to identify the mechanism. That's it, that's all. Anything else you read into this paper comes from you and you alone. So, no, I don't see a problem with the article, and you have failed to convincingly demonstrate that there is one. You still haven't said why you have no doubt your argument fails to convince me. Please elaborate.
  33. Climate Cherry Pickers: Falling sea levels in 2010
    kdkd #83 BP's analysis is 'naive' - well what does a less 'naive' analysis reveal about the acceleration or deceleration of sea level rise??
  34. It's the sun
    KR #637 "1750 has perhaps the best (not perfect) chance of being at equilibrium of those three dates - 900 temps have a steady downward trend, part of the Little Ice Age, I suspect, while 1880 is in early industrialization with numerous forcing changes from early CO2. But as the various forcings move around, the climate can only follow, only hitting equilibrium if (a) forcings don't change for a period long enough for the oceans to catch up, or (b) forcings reverse and pass climate change going the other way." Well I agree with you that AD1750 at near the Maunder Minimum would be closest to equilibrium so the temperature 'trajectory' is close to zero. Having said that - you seem to then confuse Temperature trajectories with forcings. I notice that none of ya'll (Ned KR, kdkd) seem to accept my basic point that the area under ALL the forcing curves represents the total energy gained or lost by the Earth system. I have found a summation of the 10 Radiative forcings from your chart at #623, here: Now this is interesting because if you take the areas under the "Sum of 10 Forcings" composite curve - you can see that from 1850 to about 1915 all the area under the curve is negative. According to this The Earth system has lost energy from 1850 to 1915 so we should see cooling. There is no significant cooling in temperatures in this period - in fact all charts show increasing temperatures since 1850. Clearly the only forcing which could maintain temperatures and add energy to offset the negative area was Solar, but this has been 'chart zeroed' at 1850 and has negligible area under its curve. If a S-B IR cooling response curve was added which corresponded to a temp rise of about 0.1 degC (probably more)in that period then another -0.4W/sq.m of IR cooling would add to the negative area under the combined curves. The only conclusion is that Solar should not have been zeroed, but entered the chart in AD1850 at about 0.2W/sq.m+, in order to maintain a positive area under the composite curves to support a 0.1 degC+ warming in that period. The same argument follows on for the rest of the chart up to date.
  35. Newcomers, Start Here
    #40:"If global warming is causing this gorgeous weather, should I be hating it? ... How can Skeptical Science experts help to change these attitudes?" Not all is gorgeous weather. See the recent examples here. And then look here for the new paradigm.
  36. It's the ocean
    Keenlyside et al 2008 states that a weakening of the Atlantic meriodional overturning circulation will cause North American and European temperatures to stall or cool slightly. How exactly would changes in Atlantic SSTs cause temperatures on the adjacent continents to cool? And the paper did not clarify which parts of the globe would continue to warm while North America and Europe cool slightly. Is it similer to the way ENSO affects global surface temperatures?
  37. CO2 is not increasing
    "The 'airborne fraction' refers to the amount of human CO2 emissions remaining in the atmosphere." Denial of increasing atmospheric CO2 levels is absurd, but absurdity is a common theme among deniers. But in referring to an increase in the 'airborne fraction', you're really addressing the declining ability of natural 'sinks' to absorb excess CO2. Europe seems way ahead of the rest of the world in quantifying this: Researchers from 17 European countries cooperating in the EU-Integrated Project CarboEurope ... have compiled the first comprehensive greenhouse gas balance of Europe. Key findings: Net European sinks of CO2 only amount to 15% of fossil fuel emissions. For the EU as a whole, the sink capacity is only 11% of CO2 emissions. As sinks are degraded, airborne fraction must rise.
  38. Carbon Dioxide - Everyone's Favorite Pollutant
    micheal sweet #131 "I suggest you try to stay on the point." The discussion is whether CO2 is pollution or not. On one hand of the discussion, you have those that are saying it is clearly, seriously, obviously pollution; and on the other, a natural and skeptical questioning of this idea given the fact that CO2 forms a part of our natural environment. You make a good point about how the difference in the quantity of fertilizer can be a good or a bad thing, however following this logic the could be said of water and therefore lead one to then ask whether water should'nt be considered "pollution"? If so, then CO2 also, but if not, I think there is some room here to question this decision and also consider an alternative that deals more directly to the undesired sources of CO2.
  39. Melting ice isn't warming the Arctic
    #10: "spring and summer in each hemisphere allow plants to grow and absorb CO2 while fall and winter see plants dying and releasing CO2." Of course. However, is biomass in Arctic latitudes sufficient to account for the largest amplitude seasonal swings on the planet? Or is CO2 essentially migrating in and out of the Arctic each season? Myneni et al. 1997 showed that it is sub-arctic latitudes (45-70N) that had the "greatest increase" in a consistent pattern of longer growing season, earlier snowmelt and higher amplitude CO2 cycles. (Don't you just love finding 13 year old papers that observed exactly what the skeptics/deniers are still insisting isn't happening?) "about a third of it melts out each year and the other two thirds often have widely spaced bits of ice with plenty of ocean surface receiving direct sunlight." Again, no question about that statement. But it suggests to me that summer melting is a consequence of warming; melting results in a feedback mechanism as open water has higher absorption than ice. It's this feedback that is the amplifier. But this article seems to imply the other way around: "Maximum warming occurs over the surface during winter while less surface warming is found in summer when heat is being used to melt sea ice." Shouldn't that be stated more clearly?
  40. Newcomers, Start Here
    I would augment Phil's excellent comment at 41 with this: By the time we could get the majority of the citizenry to demand action on CO2 emissions reductions, it will be too late to avoid all but the very worst of climate change's anticipated deleterious effects. Even a PETM-like extinction may become unavoidable if BAU continues much beyond 2050. The Yooper
  41. Melting ice isn't warming the Arctic
    I also read in a paper, Shakhova(2010) that there is more methane in the Arctic atmosphere than in the global atmosphere. Does this extra methane Arctic temperatures somewhat higher than they would be otherwise. And could methane release from the East Siberian Arctic Shelf and thawing tundra be partially contributing to Arctic amplification? (Something Screen (2010) did not cover)
  42. Global warming impact on tropical species greater than expected
    One thing I've noticed here in New England this year is a dramatic increase in bugs, particularly spiders. They're absolutely everywhere. I can't believe how many inconvenient places I'm finding not one but five spider webs, how big the spiders are, and how many types I'm seeing that I've never noticed before. The frogs and toads are also far more numerous, and more importantly, far, far larger. For a long time the frogs have been vanishing, along with the wetlands (due to over development), but this year I'm finding toads all over the yard, each of them twice as big as anything I normally see. This is accompanied by more plant growth. Despite a serious drought, weeds, shrubs and plants are have spread to encroach on the yard like never before. All of this is relative to my experience of the past twenty years. It's never happened before in that time. Is it just an anomaly, or is it related to the focus of this article? The next few years will be interesting to watch.
  43. Newcomers, Start Here
    If global warming is causing this gorgeous weather, should I be hating it? Should my hard-earned dollars be spent on fixing something that doesn't seem broken to me? Well if "global warming" is responsible for a specific autumn weekends weather, why is it not be responsible for Katrina or the Lake Mead drought or floods in Pakistan ? Attribution of any specific weather event to changes in climate is problematic (which is one reason why John Cooks favourite phrase "Climate trains the boxer, but weather throws the punches" is so apt - does the trainer know when the boxer will throw his next punch ?) but the suggestion might be that your wife is biased in attributing favourable events to AGW so that she can avoid thinking about the adverse affects.
  44. It's Pacific Decadal Oscillation
    The causation is what I'm curious about. Is it the PDO index that resulted in the short-term correlation or is like you suggested global temperatures that are driving the PDO index? If the PDO index is responsible for the short-term correlation what is the physical mechanism by which the PDO would affect global temperatures?
  45. It's cooling
    Re: Richo (64) I would recommend a primer in the science to get yourself a good background. There are many uninformed commenters and websites out there, so it can often be difficult to discern the wheat from the chaff. I would begin by starting here Then go here And also watch this. Then come back to Skeptical Science if you have additional concerns, type a few words describing your concern in the Search box in the upper left of every page and see what has already been covered on that topic here. On those threads, many of your questions may have already been answered. If not, find the most appropriate thread and post your question there. Feed a hungry man a fish, and he will be full - for a while. Teach a hungry man to fish and he will never be hungry again. The Yooper
  46. The first global warming skeptic
    The Inconvenient Skeptic I'm glad you accept that increased CO2 concentration does increase the energy absorbed. This was the very point I was making in the post, one thing that some people do not agree with. If it is significant or not is a completely different question. It's widely accepted, even in some skeptic quarters, that it amounts to about 3.7 W/m2 for doubling CO2 concentration. Compared to, say, thermal emission from the earth surface (see e.g. Trenberth 2009) it's a tiny fraction, not even 1%. Are we allowed to say it's insignificant just because it's "just" 1%? No for sure, it depends on how sensistive is the system under study. You can find more on this here.
  47. Melting ice isn't warming the Arctic
    Re: CBDunkerson (10) I noted your reference to the hemispheric seesaw in atmospheric CO2 and posted some available animations depicting it over on this thread. The Yooper
  48. CO2 is not increasing
    Based on CBD's comment:
    "There is a hemispheric seesaw in CO2 as spring and summer in each hemisphere allow plants to grow and absorb CO2 while fall and winter see plants dying and releasing CO2."
    I thought I would kick off this thread with some visual evidence of this seesaw: This one, using 2008 CarbonTracker data, animates changes over time. View is global, looking down. This one, from the GlobalView-CO2 Project (using data from 1979 to 2006), also animates changes over time. View is horizontal, pole-to-pole. A neat way to present a similar concept, but in a different way. I'll link this back to CBD's post on the other thread. The Yooper
  49. It's cooling
    Hello all, I'm very new here to Skeptical Science, so bear with me if I have posted in the wrong section and too late. I found this site via my day to day viewing of "Ice age now", quite an interesting read, of which in one of Robert Felix's pages he mentioned this site, and I must thank him for it. This is certainly a grade above the rest, and truly is good to see facts over fiction. My question is: How is it, that if I do a quick check on every Australian city regarding the daily mean max temp since the start of Jan 2010, has shown an increase to the yearly average ? Thus far. If according to people like Robert Felix that the sun is in a quiet period and that the earth has not warmed lately and is cooling, how on "earth" can this be happening ? My monies on something called a "Greenhouse effect". And again, my apologies if have posted inappropriately. Richo.
    Response: Playing devil's advocate, one might answer that question by saying you can't gauge global temperature trends by looking at the temperature at a few selected cities or even over a single country. What you need to do is look at the global temperature record. Of course, what this shows is the hottest 12 months on record had just transpired recently: June 2009 to May 2010. So yes, we end up with the same question - if the sun has been cooling, why are we experiencing record warm temperatures this year?

    NASA GISS global temperature - hottest 12 months on record June 2009 to May 2010
  50. Roger A. Wehage at 23:35 PM on 9 October 2010
    Newcomers, Start Here
    I am a mechanical engineer and a novice when it comes to understanding global warming and attitudes toward it. Maybe some experts on Skeptical Science can help us novices understand what motivates objectors to relentlessly hold onto their positions in the face of solid scientific data and majority consensus. What percentage of objectors know they are correct, what percentage are unsure, and what percentage know they are lying. An objector may be novice or expert. A novice objector may be motivated by fear or ignorance; an expert by knowledge or greed. Novice objectors are too often shepherded by greedy objectors. It is now 7:30 a.m., October 9, 2010 in central Illinois. The temperature is predicted to reach a balmy record high of 88°F today and 87°F tomorrow. "What a wonderful weekend this is shaping up to be. If global warming is causing this gorgeous weather, should I be hating it? Should my hard-earned dollars be spent on fixing something that doesn't seem broken to me?" These are not my words, but of many around me who clearly have different attitudes toward global warming. How can Skeptical Science experts help to change these attitudes?

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