Category Archives: climate

Coal vs. Oil: Pure Carbon vs. Hydrocarbon

An excellent discussion by Daniel Gros, an economist for the EU, brings home a very-discouraging-but- impossible-to-avoid fact about energy consumption. As the price of oil rises, one might suspect that driving and consumption will decline, but in fact the high price of oil vs. the falling price of coal means that we as a speciesContinue reading “Coal vs. Oil: Pure Carbon vs. Hydrocarbon”

James Hansen: Points of No Return Ahead

For the last few years, James Hansen, the man who first warned Congress of global warming in testimony last century, and the man considered NASA’s "top scientist" on climate questions, has been giving talks around the country asking: "Global Warming: Can We Avoid Dangerous Climate Change?" But Hansen has changed his tune: No longer doesContinue reading “James Hansen: Points of No Return Ahead”

Black Swan Sighted in Climate Sensitivity

Despite the indefatiguability of denialists, most of the facts of global warming are exceedingly well established. We know that the atmosphere is warming (about 2F, on the average, in the Southwest). We know that six out of seven world oceans are warming (see this colossal study out of Scripps, led by Tim Barnett). We knowContinue reading “Black Swan Sighted in Climate Sensitivity”

China’s Carbon Emissions: Made for the USA?

Yesterday a D.C. nonprofit, the Center for Global Development, released an inventory of the world’s power plants. Its nifty database shows that on a national level, China trails only the the U.S. in total emissions of greenhouse gases, and not by much. This will disappoint the global warming proponents at National Review, who have beenContinue reading “China’s Carbon Emissions: Made for the USA?”

Blogging the Stern Review: Introduction

As it becomes ever more apparent that consensus has formed on climate change, both scientific and popular, the next question is what action(s) the international community should take and, of course, how much will they cost? The book on this question was written by Nicholas Stern, former Chief Economist at the World Bank, and aContinue reading “Blogging the Stern Review: Introduction”

The Disappearance of the Arctic Ice

Courtesy of NASA, via the Washington Post, a stunning look (without sound) at the shockingly rapid disappearance of ice at the North Pole between September 2005 and September 2007. Note the tough lede on the accompanying story from Doug Struck: For scientists, global warming is a disaster movie, its opening scenes set at the polesContinue reading “The Disappearance of the Arctic Ice”

Global Warming News You Can Use

Some of the best climate reporting recently has come out of Seth Borenstein of (I think) the Associated Press.  (His stories are so often syndicated it can sometimes be hard to tell.) Here’s his latest, which looks at climate change from a practical–comfort–angle. If you live in an area where humidity is a part ofContinue reading “Global Warming News You Can Use”

Could a Lack of Arctic Ice Bring Drought to Southwest?

That’s the theory emerging from young researcher Jacob Sewall, now at the University of Virginia, as explained in this thoughtful story from Rob Krier. I hope to have a chance to take a long look for myself at this question. Three years ago, computer forecast models predicted that in 2050, the reduced ice mass wouldContinue reading “Could a Lack of Arctic Ice Bring Drought to Southwest?”