For those who have endured this winter's frigid temperatures and today's heavy snowstorm in the Northeast, the concept of global warming may seem, well, almost wishful.(via Planet Gore)
But climate is known to be variable -- a cold winter, or a few strung together doesn't mean the planet is cooling. Still, according to a new study in Geophysical Research Letters, global warming may have hit a speed bump and could go into hiding for decades.
Earth's climate continues to confound scientists. Following a 30-year trend of warming, global temperatures have flatlined since 2001 despite rising greenhouse gas concentrations, and a heat surplus that should have cranked up the planetary thermostat.
"This is nothing like anything we've seen since 1950," Kyle Swanson of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee said. "Cooling events since then had firm causes, like eruptions or large-magnitude La Ninas. This current cooling doesn't have one."
Instead, Swanson and colleague Anastasios Tsonis think a series of climate processes have aligned, conspiring to chill the climate. In 1997 and 1998, the tropical Pacific Ocean warmed rapidly in what Swanson called a "super El Nino event." It sent a shock wave through the oceans and atmosphere, jarring their circulation patterns into unison.
How does this square with temperature records from 2005-2007, by some measurements among the warmest years on record? When added up with the other four years since 2001, Swanson said the overall trend is flat, even though temperatures should have gone up by 0.2 degrees Centigrade (0.36 degrees Fahrenheit) during that time.
The discrepancy gets to the heart of one of the toughest problems in climate science -- identifying the difference between natural variability (like the occasional March snowstorm) from human-induced change.
Friday, March 06, 2009
Someone Better Tell The President
From the March 2nd Discovery News:
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1 comment:
> global warming may have hit a speed bump and could go into hiding for decades.
Jeeez. Anything but admit that maybe the stupid idea was wrong in the first damned place.
> Following a 30-year trend of warming, global temperatures have flatlined since 2001 despite rising greenhouse gas concentrations...
More correctly
...Following a 30 year trend of Global cooling, followed by a 30-year trend of warming, global temperatures have flatlined since 2001 despite an entire century and more of rising greenhouse gas concentrations, which should, in fact, have represented almost an entire century of rising temperatures if AGW is even vaguely correct....
This suggests that, perhaps, the whole thing is actually one giant Snark Hunt.
Unfortunately, Hansen, Gore, etal., haven't yet figured out that their snark is likely, in fact, a boojum. At some point, they will all "softly and and suddenly vanish away", as people more and more grasp what a ridiculous crock it all is.
> Instead, Swanson and colleague Anastasios Tsonis think a series of climate processes have aligned, conspiring to chill the climate
Oh, yes, Bushitler and his eeeevil minions have conspired with the EARTH ITSELF to make them look like total IDIOTS. Jeeez, again.
> The discrepancy gets to the heart of one of the toughest problems in climate science -- identifying the difference between natural variability (like the occasional March snowstorm) from human-induced change.
Conveniently ignoring the possibility (Oh, wait, sorry, "the demonstrated FACT") that there are also much larger swings of natural variability (like the occasional 20-30 year hot or cold spell... or the 200-300 year hot or cold spell) and recognizing the difference between THOSE and "human induced change".
They are either
a) complete morons
or
b) completely self-serving charlatans
In either case, why does anyone even bother to listen to them?
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