We're getting cooler! Globally coldest year....

I'm not sure who assumes that the sun's output is constant. My understanding is that scientists who support the CO2 theory of global warming recognize the effects of solar variation, sunspots, etc on global temperature. However, they do not consider measured changes in those areas to be the cause of the dramatic rise in global temperature that we have witnessed.

The following BBC article highlights a paper published in 2007 by the Proceedings of the Royal Society. The paper found that based on the sun's output, the global temperature should have declined over the last 20 years, which obviously did not happen.

An FYI that the Royal Society is also the group that brought us the first english scientific journal in history, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society. Just in case someone thought this was a disreputable source.

 

Well I agree, and I guess that my post didn't make that clear. The current consensus on global warming is liable to go the way of all those others. And here's a couple more -

"Banning DDT will save our environment" - Actually, banning DDT in the 1970's increased malaria deaths to 1 million per year.The World Health Organization is now encouraging the use of DDT. Where it's now being used in Africa, malarial deaths have been reduced 75% in just 2 years with no known adverse effects on human or animal health.

"Global cooling will lead to reduced food supplies" - A 30-year cooling trend beginnig in the 1940s caused climatologists in the 70's to warn of shortened growing seasons and decreased agricultural productivity. Didn't happen.

"Banning CFCs will save the ozone layer" - In 1989, Over150 countries agreed to eliminate CFCs at a cost of many billions of dollars. CFC concentrations have been falling since 1995. Has the ozone hole improved? Nope.

"Polar bears are dying for lack of ice floes" - In fact there are now more polar bears than 40 years ago. The Canadian polar bear population has actually increased by 25% over the past decade

 

Global cooling

Now it's global warming. So, Gore's a "genius" and was awarded a Nobel peace prize and an academy award. Mikhail Gorbachev won a Nobel peace prize too.

But, Dan Quayle is a "moron" for spelling potato wrong? I guess the people who berate Quayle for that one misjudgment are perfect. That must be it.
Dan Quayle would have made a better President than Gore could ever dream about being.

 

The melting of the martian polar ice caps is thought to be due to large variations in the Martian axis and orbit around the sun which are accentuated because Mars has no moon.

Pub Med - Nature abstract - Orbital forcing of the martian polar layered deposits - Laskar J, Levrard B, Mustard JF

 

FTR, Mars actually has two moons, albeit fairly small ones.

BTW, under this proposed theory, would not one 'icecap' get less sun, if the other received increased exposure? I did manage to pass my HS science class, years ago, and this seems pretty logical, even given any tilting on the axis.

Ed

 

My bad, you are correct about the moons.

You are also correct that the axis variation would result in the opposite pole getting less sun. I believe most reports about the martian ice caps melting refer to the southern martian ice cap.

Orbital variation would result in both ice caps getting less sun. I think the mention of the axis variation is also because of its contribution to the variation on the orbit of Mars.

 

3-page warning: This thread will be closed no sooner than 5:00 a.m. ET by one of the moderators.

L.E.

 

Not sure of the source of the data, but just heard this evening that this past year was one of the coldest, worldwide, in recent history.

Ed

 

If recent history is the last 8 years then yes. But to put that in context, it is still the 8th hottest year on record.

 

Closed at 0634 EST