science

Here is Michael Oppenheimer, a climate scientist who helped author the latest IPCC climate report, on the Colbert Report with Stephen Colbert.

Two new chilling ads were recently released by the Ad Council and are published at fightglobalwarming.com. The first campaign features children ticking off global warming's worst consequences if action is not taken soon.

The second portrays global warming as a train headed for future generations if action is not taken soon.

In their continued effort to confuse the irrefutable facts about global warming, ExxonMobil funds multiple Institutes (e.g. Cooperative Environmental Institute, Marshall Institute) to publish misleading facts about global warming. While this misinformation is not nearly as frequent or as reputable as the overwhelming scientific concensus on global warming, it is gaining nearly equal press time, helping confuse consumers in the US and elsewhere. ExxonMobil has already spent nearly $16 Million to fund a carefully crafted campaign of confusion and misinformation on global warming.

ExxonMobil has gone as far as hiring many of the individuals and agencies that have helped tobacco stay so successful despite the proven health risks associated with smoking.The tactics of the oil giant have been compared to ongoing tactics used by the tobacco industry, and rightfully so. ExxonMobil has gone as far as hiring many of the individuals and agencies that have helped tobacco stay so successful despite the proven health risks associated with smoking.

On a more personal note, I was very disheartened to learn that the NSTA (National Science Teachers Association), which I was a member of until this weekend, is heavily funded by ExxonMobil and has helped cloud the issue of global warming in our nation's schools.

Cartoon courtesy of Seppo Leinonen. Be sure to check out his other great cartoons!

NOAA announced today that 2006 was a record warm year for the U.S., but only the 6th warmest year globally.

The increasingly common strange weather events of the recent years have prompted many people to immediately point fingers at global warming. No single weather event, however, can ever be clearly blamed on our changing climate. Statistically, though, a warming climate means that certain weather events are more likely to occur. The anomalously warm winter experienced in the U.S. cannot be pinned on global warming, yet winters like this past one are much more likely to occur in the future.

NOAA has been conspicuously denying any links to global warmingWhile everyone is busy blaming global warming on the freaky weather, NOAA has been conspicuously denying any links to global warming and are all too quick to point the blame on El Niño. Our friends over at Realclimate.org nicely explain that the anomalous warmth of this past winter very closely resembles the warmth of the previous winter when we were in a weak La Niña. They then ask how El Niño can be to blame when the same thing happened during a La Niña, essentially the opposite of an El Niño. It also closely resembles the predicted pattern expected with climate warming.

The models predict that this level of CO2 will produce what some call a "roasted world"There are many people that worry that we are passed a tipping point in climate, and that no matter what we do, we can no longer change the course that we are on. The bad news is that this is true, but only to a point. The good news is that our actions today will change the degree (no pun intended) of global warming that we experience.

Our climate models that are used to predict future warming have improved to the point that the greatest uncertainty in the future of this planet's climate is ... drum roll please ... us! If we continue to grow and continue to burn fossil fuels (coal and oil) at the present rates, we will quadruple (4X) the CO2 in the atmosphere from pre-industrial levels. The models predict that this level of CO2 will produce what some call a "roasted world" -- one in which temperatures reach 12-25 deg. F.

If, however, we act quickly, thoughtfully, and universally, we can reduce emissions. One of the most hopeful emissions scenarios is to only reach a doubling (2X) of preindustrial CO2 by 2100. Cutting back CO2 emissions to only reach 2x CO2 by 2100 will be extremely difficult, but essential! This scenario produces the type of warming that Al Gore speaks about. Sure, it will be terrible, but the planet will still be inhabitable.

Look at the results of a climate model with both 2X (top) and 4X CO2 (bottom) by 2100 and ask yourself if anything can be done.

A huge section of the Ayles ice shelf has broken off in the Canadian Arctic. The breakup was detected by seismic activity measured over 250 km away and confirmed by satellite imagery (like the one here).

...think about how different if feels to wear a black shirt in the sun than a white oneIce shelfs, like Ayles, play an important role in slowing down the flow of ice from a glacier into the ocean. They also provide unique marine habitats below the ice, insulate the water below from global warming, and reflect 80% more of the incoming sunlight than the ocean beneath. To get a sense of this last point, think about how different if feels to wear a black shirt in the sun than a white one. Now look at the image above. Notice the white ice shelf in comparison to the nearly black ocean surrounding it.

You can read more about the ice shelf collapse here where many news articles about it are referenced.

The Bush administration is once again excercising executive power over climate scientists, now subjecting any scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey to controls over any research which might have results that conflict with official US policy.

Read more...

NASA scientists are finding that earlier sea-ice break ups in the Arctic are putting increased pressure on polar bears. Read more..

NASA finds that Arctic sea ice cover decreased by 14% between 2004 and 2005, a record loss. Read more...

There has been much buzz about the recent news that Pluto is no longer classified as a planet. I wanted to clarify a few confusing facts. One thing that should be crystal clear is that prior to the IAU decision last week there were 9 planets in our solar system. Now that Pluto has been demoted, there are 12, since 9-1=12.

The IAU established on Thursday a "clear" definition for what constitutes a planetFurthermore, there has been a few announcements of some new celestial bodies that have been added to our list of planets. They are Charon, Ceres, and 2003 UB313. Charon and Pluto are now being labeled as double planets since they share a common center of gravity somewhere in the space between them. Thus, neither is a moon of the other -- they technically orbit around each other. I still haven't figured out how to pronounce Ceres, and 2003 UB313, which is larger than Pluto, is temporarily being called Xena -- for some Amazon-like television heroine. These three new planets clearly bring the total number to 8 since 9+3=8.