If actions speak louder than words, then Republicans still want more global warming. That’s the message of an entertaining but hard-hitting column by the great Jonathan Chait in this week’s issue of The New Republic. He states the ideological case wittily up front: Republicans are no longer denying the scientific basis for global warming. That’sContinue reading “Global Warming: Republicans For It Still”
Category Archives: climate
The American West: Hotter, Drier, More Disease-Prone
The lede from ScienceDaily: The American West has warmed 70 percent more than the planet as a whole, according to a new analysis in a new report released by the Rocky Mountain Climate Organization (RMCO) and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). The West’s most pronounced temperature increase is in the Colorado River basin, whichContinue reading “The American West: Hotter, Drier, More Disease-Prone”
Wilkins Ice Shelf Collapses
Can we appreciate the bluntness of Seth Borenstein’s reporting for the AP on this? I can…note the factual but alarming phrases he uses, such as "suddenly" "collapses" "risk" "runaway" "global warming" and "British scientist." No false balance in this story. WASHINGTON — A chunk of Antarctic ice about seven times the size of Manhattan suddenlyContinue reading “Wilkins Ice Shelf Collapses”
Global Warming Quotes, via the WSJ
A superb selection of quotations on global warming, almost all of them (save from James Hansen) new to me, courtesy of The Wall Street Journal. The first, in some ways, is the best: 1979 “It is the sense of the scientific community that carbon dioxide from unrestrained combustion of fossil fuels potentially is the mostContinue reading “Global Warming Quotes, via the WSJ”
A Cold Winter, A Good Rain, a Hot Spring
As we head into spring, it’s natural to take a look back at the winter of 2007-2008. This was a cold winter, both for those of us on the ground on the West Coast, and, unsurprisingly, for atmospheric measuring instruments. Variability in weather is of course still with, as is the chill associated with LaContinue reading “A Cold Winter, A Good Rain, a Hot Spring”
James Hansen Proves His Ability to Predict the Future
Now we return to the thrilling yesteryear of l981, when James Hansen and a team of scientists at the Godard Institute of Space Studies released a study called Climate Impact of Increasing Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide. Take a gander at the summary: The global temperature rose by 0.2 degrees C between the middle 1960’s and l980,Continue reading “James Hansen Proves His Ability to Predict the Future”
Stabilizing Climate Requires Near-Zero Emissions
More good atmospheric news: According to young researchers Ken Caldeira and Damon Matthews, reducing carbon emissions by 80% by the year 2050 may not be enough to stabilize the climate. In a study just published in the Geophysical Research Letters, with the actually kinda catchy title Stabilizing Climate Requires Near-Zero Emissions, they argue that becauseContinue reading “Stabilizing Climate Requires Near-Zero Emissions”
Whack a Climate Mole (killing the global cooling lie)
Two veterans of the climate wars, John Fleck (a reporter) and William Connolley (a scientist) team up for RealClimate to bring perspective — and data — to the endlessly misleading "How can we believe climate scientists about global warming today when back in the 1970s they told us an ice age was imminent?" They write:Continue reading “Whack a Climate Mole (killing the global cooling lie)”
The Fate of Greenland — and Our Children
It’s a debate. Andrew Revkin briskly outlines the possibilities for the New York Times, but for me what makes this story are the images, the best I’ve seen in years. Take a look. Here’s a picture of a camping spot on Greenland via 5 acrefarmer. As one commentator says, I’m not sure I’ll ever beContinue reading “The Fate of Greenland — and Our Children”
Global Warming a Bigger Threat than Iraq
Future historians will almost certainly regard the failure of the United States to lead in global environmental policy as an even greater mistake than the invasion of Iraq. So says Ken Rogoff in the distinguished Foreign Policy journal, on his way to calling for a big gas tax — no less than two dollars. FunnyContinue reading “Global Warming a Bigger Threat than Iraq”
Kit Stolz 