As you all know, on Thursday in class, we began watching An Inconvenient Truth. Throughout the documentary, Al Gore expresses his main concerns about the issue of global warming. On several occasions, he mentions “the skeptics,” but fails to go into great detail on their viewpoints. I have seen this documentary a few other times, and this question has always bugged me: What exactly are the skeptics of global warming saying? What are they saying that is correct or incorrect? What is the other side of the story? I decided to do a little research on the internet to find an answer.It was difficult to find credible information that wasn’t biased towards certain stances on global warming. Here is one statement that I found from Friends of Science, a non-profit research group based in Canada:
"It is our opinion that the Sun is the main direct and indirect driver of climate change."
I pose this challenge to you: What information can you find? What are the critics of global warming saying (right or wrong)?
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Good post! I think many of us were wondering the same thing in class last week.
I managed to find a little information about what some global warming skeptics are using as rebuttals against global warming activists. The following statements are summarized from the Skeptics Global Warming website (http://skepticsglobalwarming.com/global-warming-myth/disputing-global-warming/global-warming-hoax-a-skeptical-beginners-guide-part-i/) and describe their beliefs I considered the most interesting:
1. Antarctic ice is growing on three sides of the continent.
2. We're currently in a solar maximum so perhaps the sun has a real effect on Earth's climate after all.
3. There is no real correlation between carbon dioxide and temperature.
4. Global warming does not cause more hurricanes, and the scientist who first stated that has since reversed his decision.
From what I understand, the controversy between the skeptics and activists has stemmed from differing views in interpretation of data.
Thanks for your input, Hannah! I really like the facts that you dug up! I agree that the controversy has to do with differences in interpreting data. I am just confused about whose interpretations to believe!
Great question to pose, Lauren! I found the Union of Concerned Scientists: Citizens and Scientists for Environmental Solutions. They have a page on global warming that identifies six global warming skeptic groups and explains what they believe. The most interesting part is looking at who funds these skeptic groups...industry, big oil, etc. Makes their motives questionable. Copy and past this link to read for yourself...
http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/science_and_impacts/global_warming_contrarians/global-warming-skeptic.html
I found a few quick facts from the National Geographic about global warming! :)
• Average temperatures have climbed 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit around the world since 1880
• The 20th century's last two decades were the hottest in 400 years and possibly the warmest for several millennia, and 11 of the past 12 years are among the dozen warmest since 1850.
• The Arctic is feeling the effects the most. Average temperatures in Alaska, western Canada, and eastern Russia have risen at twice the global average
• Arctic ice is rapidly disappearing, and the region may have its first completely ice-free summer by 2040 or earlier. Polar bears and indigenous cultures are already suffering from the sea-ice loss.
• Glaciers and mountain snows are rapidly melting—for example, Montana's Glacier National Park now has only 27 glaciers, versus 150 in 1910.
• An upsurge in the amount of extreme weather events, such as wildfires, heat waves, and strong tropical storms, is also attributed in part to climate change by some experts.
And the human effect...
• Industrialization, deforestation, and pollution have greatly increased atmospheric concentrations of water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, all greenhouse gases that help trap heat near Earth's surface.
• Humans are pouring carbon dioxide into the atmosphere much faster than plants and oceans can absorb it.These gases persist in the atmosphere for years, meaning that even if such emissions were eliminated today, it would not immediately stop global warming.
What's Going to Happen?
A follow-up report by the IPCC released in April 2007 warned that global warming could lead to large-scale food and water shortages and have catastrophic effects on wildlife.
• Sea level could rise between 7 and 23 inches by century's end. Rises of just 4 inches could flood many South Seas islands and swamp large parts of Southeast Asia.
• Some hundred million people live within 3 feet of mean sea level, and much of the world's population is concentrated in vulnerable coastal cities. In the U.S., Louisiana and Florida are especially at risk.
• Glaciers around the world could melt, causing sea levels to rise while creating water shortages in regions dependent on runoff for fresh water.
• Strong hurricanes, droughts, heat waves, wildfires, and other natural disasters may become commonplace in many parts of the world. The growth of deserts may also cause food shortages in many places.
• More than a million species face extinction from disappearing habitat, changing ecosystems, and acidifying oceans.
• The ocean's circulation system, known as the ocean conveyor belt, could be permanently altered, causing a mini-ice age in Western Europe and other rapid changes.
• At some point in the future, warming could become uncontrollable by creating a so-called positive feedback effect. Rising temperatures could release additional greenhouse gases by unlocking methane in permafrost and undersea deposits, freeing carbon trapped in sea ice, and causing increased evaporation of water.
Found in an article from 2007... at http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/12/1206_041206_global_warming.html :)
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