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New Method ProvesmdashAga inmdashClimateChange Is RealIn response to contrarian takes on the measurement of global average temperatures climate
scientist demonstrates global warming via historic ocean temperatures and air pressure
By Stephanie Paige Ogburn and ClimateWire | April 10 2013
In August 2012 John Christy a climate
scientist from the University of Alabama
Huntsville testified to the Senate
Environment and Public Works Committee
that the Earth is not warming
In part Christys testimony a controversial
one was based on what he described as a
problem with how surface temperatures are
measured and a veraged
Climate scientist Gilbert Compos response
to that was Well Ill measure those
temperatures differently
So he set out to use an entirely different
method to determine if the Earths surface temperature had increased 12 degrees
Celsius since preindustrial times
The answer Undeniably yes
This new method shows that it is not a factor of measurement error and that the Earth
has in fact warmed said Compo
Data from ships logs and Army basesIf I had ever had any doubts about whether global warming was happening then this
[study] which I know has no relationship to the land-based observations dashed all
of my doubts Compo said The results of the study were published online Monday in
the journal Geophysical Research Letters
The locations of weather stations changes in instruments the siting of weather
stations in warmer urban areas changes in land cover and other issues have all been
cited as issues affecting the temperature trends often used to show that our planet is
in fact warming
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7232019 A New Method ProvesmdashAgainmdashClimate Change is Real - Scientific American
httpslidepdfcomreaderfulla-new-method-provesagainclimate-change-is-real-scientific-american 23
1182015 N ew M ethod Pr ovesmdashAgai nmdashC li mate C hange Is R eal - Sci enti fi c Am er ican
httpwwwscientificamericancomarticlenew-method-proves-climate-change-is-real
Compos method uses none of these Instead the researcher and his colleagues use
historic measurements of air pressure and ocean temperatures put into a model to
calibrate surface temperatures over the 20th century
That project called the 20th Century Reanalysis gets those pressure data from
historic data sources like ship logs and Army bases which are compiled by volunteers
at oldweatherorg and ACRE two efforts that catalog old weather data and make them
available to researchers
Those many many pieces of air pressure data help Compo and his team piece together
a snapshot of what was happening in the weather at a given point in time every six
hours since the 1870s in fact
SEE ALSO
Health New Medical Devices Vanish Inside You | Mind What Is Obsessive-Compulsive
Personality Disorder (OCPD) | Tech Why Keystone XL Is Dead | The
Sciences Dancing Droplets
If the researchers can spot pressure highs and lows then they know where the wind is
blowing for instance As they continue to add data points from around the globe and
move forward in time a process of elimination takes place until they know what the
temperature is in say Washington DC 100 years ago
When I know where the highs and lows are I know where the hot and cold spots have
to be I can start to line them up said Compo Its like Sudoku
Skeptics remain skeptical
Eugenia Kalnay a professor at the University of Maryland who reviewed the paper
called the model very sophisticated
Kalnay said it provides an answer to climate skeptics who point out that changes in
land use or instrumentation make land-based temperature data unreliable
Climate scientist Roger Pielke Sr and Alabamas Christy whose papers and testimony
are cited in Compos paper as part of the rationale for addressing the issue of whether
surface temperatures have warmed said they admired the researchs approach but
also said it does not address all the questions they have raised about warming trends
Pielke who said one issue ignored in the paper is that land surface temperature
measurements over time show bigger warming trends than measurements from
higher up in a part of the atmosphere called the lower troposphere and that still needs
more explanation
Another issue said Christy is the role of maximum and minimum temperatures
Minimum temperatures have risen more than maximum temperatures possibly due
to land-use changes which as Christy pointed out in his Senate testimony can be
problematic when creating warming trend lines since temperatures are calculated as
an average of minimum and maximum
Pielke agreed that despite this paper the problem of maximum and minimum
temperatures still exists
The Compo et al paper is an original approach Pielke said but they still need to
Portable Roof Damage Detection
Deadline Nov 10 2015Reward 75000 USD
The Seeker desires a technology that can detect seen
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7232019 A New Method ProvesmdashAgainmdashClimate Change is Real - Scientific American
httpslidepdfcomreaderfulla-new-method-provesagainclimate-change-is-real-scientific-american 33
1182015 N ew M ethod Pr ovesmdashAgai nmdashC li mate C hange Is R eal - Sci enti fi c Am er ican
httpwwwscientificamericancomarticlenew-method-proves-climate-change-is-real
Share this Article
look into this important issue
Reprinted from Climatewire with permission from Environment amp Energy
Publishing LLC wwweenewsnet 202-628-6500
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Comments
Oldest - Newest
April 10 2013 1103 AMsault
I dont know how many times the scientific community has to undoubtedly prove climate change for
the skeptics to change their mind I guess that without climate skepticism most of these people would just be o bscure anlaysts I mean the media SHOWER these peo ple with attention WAY o ut
of proportion to their credentials and scientific achievements all while nearly ignoring the scientific
consensus that greenhouse gases are changing the climate Some skeptics like Dr Willie Soon are
almost totaly financed by fossil fuel companies
Either way any person with a degree in something can make a name for themselves fairly easily by
delving into the complexity of climate change and coming up with some technobabble that sounds
just plausible enough to confuse the average person T hey dont even have to do real science as is
shown by the utter lack of skeptical papers in peer-reviewed journals Meanwhile the media just
falls all over themselves presenting the he said she said aspects of the story while ignoring the
tremendous differences in credibility and scientific rigor between the two sides For example the
Sunday Morning talk shows had exactly ZERO climate scientists on over the past few years when
discussing this issue Sadly they let corporate lobbyists and politicians that are heavily-dependent
on donations from fossil fuel companies have the vast majority of the air time on the issue instead
So why would we listen to people with a vested financial interest in polluting the air instead of you
knowactual climate scientists You dont go to the candy store for advice on weight loss and you
DEFINITELY dont go to a drug dealer to get rehab right Well this is how we are handling the
climate change issue and were wasting valuable time
Report as Abuse | Link to This
April 10 2013 1115 AMSisko
This is a much better article by Climatewire that demonstrates that there is only a very limited
scientific consensus on the issue of climate change and still much to learn regarding the rate of
change associated with CO2
7232019 A New Method ProvesmdashAgainmdashClimate Change is Real - Scientific American
httpslidepdfcomreaderfulla-new-method-provesagainclimate-change-is-real-scientific-american 23
1182015 N ew M ethod Pr ovesmdashAgai nmdashC li mate C hange Is R eal - Sci enti fi c Am er ican
httpwwwscientificamericancomarticlenew-method-proves-climate-change-is-real
Compos method uses none of these Instead the researcher and his colleagues use
historic measurements of air pressure and ocean temperatures put into a model to
calibrate surface temperatures over the 20th century
That project called the 20th Century Reanalysis gets those pressure data from
historic data sources like ship logs and Army bases which are compiled by volunteers
at oldweatherorg and ACRE two efforts that catalog old weather data and make them
available to researchers
Those many many pieces of air pressure data help Compo and his team piece together
a snapshot of what was happening in the weather at a given point in time every six
hours since the 1870s in fact
SEE ALSO
Health New Medical Devices Vanish Inside You | Mind What Is Obsessive-Compulsive
Personality Disorder (OCPD) | Tech Why Keystone XL Is Dead | The
Sciences Dancing Droplets
If the researchers can spot pressure highs and lows then they know where the wind is
blowing for instance As they continue to add data points from around the globe and
move forward in time a process of elimination takes place until they know what the
temperature is in say Washington DC 100 years ago
When I know where the highs and lows are I know where the hot and cold spots have
to be I can start to line them up said Compo Its like Sudoku
Skeptics remain skeptical
Eugenia Kalnay a professor at the University of Maryland who reviewed the paper
called the model very sophisticated
Kalnay said it provides an answer to climate skeptics who point out that changes in
land use or instrumentation make land-based temperature data unreliable
Climate scientist Roger Pielke Sr and Alabamas Christy whose papers and testimony
are cited in Compos paper as part of the rationale for addressing the issue of whether
surface temperatures have warmed said they admired the researchs approach but
also said it does not address all the questions they have raised about warming trends
Pielke who said one issue ignored in the paper is that land surface temperature
measurements over time show bigger warming trends than measurements from
higher up in a part of the atmosphere called the lower troposphere and that still needs
more explanation
Another issue said Christy is the role of maximum and minimum temperatures
Minimum temperatures have risen more than maximum temperatures possibly due
to land-use changes which as Christy pointed out in his Senate testimony can be
problematic when creating warming trend lines since temperatures are calculated as
an average of minimum and maximum
Pielke agreed that despite this paper the problem of maximum and minimum
temperatures still exists
The Compo et al paper is an original approach Pielke said but they still need to
Portable Roof Damage Detection
Deadline Nov 10 2015Reward 75000 USD
The Seeker desires a technology that can detect seen
and unseen anomalies such as hail damage onasphalt shingle roofs The technology
More Challenges raquo
Powered By
Latest from SA Blog Network
Live-Blogging Richard Waitts In the Path of
Destruction VI The Devastation from Within
Rosetta Stones | 12 hours ago
Do College Admissions Criteria Capture
Creativity
Beautiful Minds | November 7 2015
BlackLivesMatter but Does Black Tech
Expertise Matter too
The Urban Scientist | November 6 2015
Stowaway Snail Helps Save Species from
Extinction
Extinction Countdown | November 6 2015
The Phonograph Goes to War 1915
Anecdotes from the Archive | November 6 2015
News From Our Partners
Mexico Court Ruling Sparks High Hopes for
Marijuana Legalization
Memory-Boosting Devices Tested in Humans
Bad News for Terraforming Marss Atmosphere
Is Lost in Space
ExxonMobil Denies Lying about Global Warming
Science Jobs of the WeekPostdoctoral Research AssociateImperial College London
Faculty recruitment in Nanjing Medical UniversityNanjing Medical University
Marie Curie 15 PhD FellowshipsUniversity of Cambridge
More jobs from Naturejobscom raquo
7232019 A New Method ProvesmdashAgainmdashClimate Change is Real - Scientific American
httpslidepdfcomreaderfulla-new-method-provesagainclimate-change-is-real-scientific-american 33
1182015 N ew M ethod Pr ovesmdashAgai nmdashC li mate C hange Is R eal - Sci enti fi c Am er ican
httpwwwscientificamericancomarticlenew-method-proves-climate-change-is-real
Share this Article
look into this important issue
Reprinted from Climatewire with permission from Environment amp Energy
Publishing LLC wwweenewsnet 202-628-6500
Recommended For You
1 The Problem with Female Superheroes 4 months agoscientificamericancom ScientificAmericancom Mind amp Brain
2 Why There Will Never Be Another Einstein 2 months ago blogsscientificamericancom ScientificAmericancom More Science
3 Men Are Attracted to Nonconformist Women 4 weeks agoscientificamericancom ScientificAmericancom Head Lines
Comments
Oldest - Newest
April 10 2013 1103 AMsault
I dont know how many times the scientific community has to undoubtedly prove climate change for
the skeptics to change their mind I guess that without climate skepticism most of these people would just be o bscure anlaysts I mean the media SHOWER these peo ple with attention WAY o ut
of proportion to their credentials and scientific achievements all while nearly ignoring the scientific
consensus that greenhouse gases are changing the climate Some skeptics like Dr Willie Soon are
almost totaly financed by fossil fuel companies
Either way any person with a degree in something can make a name for themselves fairly easily by
delving into the complexity of climate change and coming up with some technobabble that sounds
just plausible enough to confuse the average person T hey dont even have to do real science as is
shown by the utter lack of skeptical papers in peer-reviewed journals Meanwhile the media just
falls all over themselves presenting the he said she said aspects of the story while ignoring the
tremendous differences in credibility and scientific rigor between the two sides For example the
Sunday Morning talk shows had exactly ZERO climate scientists on over the past few years when
discussing this issue Sadly they let corporate lobbyists and politicians that are heavily-dependent
on donations from fossil fuel companies have the vast majority of the air time on the issue instead
So why would we listen to people with a vested financial interest in polluting the air instead of you
knowactual climate scientists You dont go to the candy store for advice on weight loss and you
DEFINITELY dont go to a drug dealer to get rehab right Well this is how we are handling the
climate change issue and were wasting valuable time
Report as Abuse | Link to This
April 10 2013 1115 AMSisko
This is a much better article by Climatewire that demonstrates that there is only a very limited
scientific consensus on the issue of climate change and still much to learn regarding the rate of
change associated with CO2
7232019 A New Method ProvesmdashAgainmdashClimate Change is Real - Scientific American
httpslidepdfcomreaderfulla-new-method-provesagainclimate-change-is-real-scientific-american 33
1182015 N ew M ethod Pr ovesmdashAgai nmdashC li mate C hange Is R eal - Sci enti fi c Am er ican
httpwwwscientificamericancomarticlenew-method-proves-climate-change-is-real
Share this Article
look into this important issue
Reprinted from Climatewire with permission from Environment amp Energy
Publishing LLC wwweenewsnet 202-628-6500
Recommended For You
1 The Problem with Female Superheroes 4 months agoscientificamericancom ScientificAmericancom Mind amp Brain
2 Why There Will Never Be Another Einstein 2 months ago blogsscientificamericancom ScientificAmericancom More Science
3 Men Are Attracted to Nonconformist Women 4 weeks agoscientificamericancom ScientificAmericancom Head Lines
Comments
Oldest - Newest
April 10 2013 1103 AMsault
I dont know how many times the scientific community has to undoubtedly prove climate change for
the skeptics to change their mind I guess that without climate skepticism most of these people would just be o bscure anlaysts I mean the media SHOWER these peo ple with attention WAY o ut
of proportion to their credentials and scientific achievements all while nearly ignoring the scientific
consensus that greenhouse gases are changing the climate Some skeptics like Dr Willie Soon are
almost totaly financed by fossil fuel companies
Either way any person with a degree in something can make a name for themselves fairly easily by
delving into the complexity of climate change and coming up with some technobabble that sounds
just plausible enough to confuse the average person T hey dont even have to do real science as is
shown by the utter lack of skeptical papers in peer-reviewed journals Meanwhile the media just
falls all over themselves presenting the he said she said aspects of the story while ignoring the
tremendous differences in credibility and scientific rigor between the two sides For example the
Sunday Morning talk shows had exactly ZERO climate scientists on over the past few years when
discussing this issue Sadly they let corporate lobbyists and politicians that are heavily-dependent
on donations from fossil fuel companies have the vast majority of the air time on the issue instead
So why would we listen to people with a vested financial interest in polluting the air instead of you
knowactual climate scientists You dont go to the candy store for advice on weight loss and you
DEFINITELY dont go to a drug dealer to get rehab right Well this is how we are handling the
climate change issue and were wasting valuable time
Report as Abuse | Link to This
April 10 2013 1115 AMSisko
This is a much better article by Climatewire that demonstrates that there is only a very limited
scientific consensus on the issue of climate change and still much to learn regarding the rate of
change associated with CO2
Top Related