Global+warming


 * back to** Inconvenient truths

see [] =Climate Change =  Variations in the behavior of the weather over long time periods, such as from one century to another, is referred to as climate change. Climate itself adjusts from times of 'ice ages,' when huge ice sheets covered large areas that are currently ice-free, to periods similar to today when ice sheets are largely confined to Antarctica, Greenland, and the floating Arctic sea ice. Paleo-climate records indicate that much of the climatic changes over the last two million years have occurred in a rather cyclical manner; with glacial periods lasting roughly 100,000 years with warmer interglacial periods of 10,000 years occurring in between. Prior to the 1990s, scientists largely believed that the shifts in climate between ice ages and warmer periods occurred over centuries and millennia due to the large amount of time necessary to build up or melt an ice sheet over a kilometer in thickness. Geologic evidence from the last few decades, however, shows that there have also been rather abrupt periods of climate change spanning anywhere from years to decades. Abrupt climate changes can occur when certain variables change gradually pushing the Earth's system across some limit of instability. Climate variation occurs as a response to climate forcings which can cause either a warming or a cooling of the atmosphere. Over most of the Earth's history the forcings have been entirely natural, caused by continental drift, variability in solar radiation, changes in the Earth's orbit, and volcanic emissions. However, since the Industrial Revolution, human activity has had an impact on the global climate system, increasing the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, trapping heat and contributing to an overall global warming. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported that the Earth's average surface temperature during the 20th century increased approximately 0.6ºC. While this may seem like a small change, global temperatures are generally quite stable. The difference between global temperature today and the average global temperature of the last ice age is only about 5ºC. However, over the last century we have also witnessed a nearly 10% decrease in snow cover and a 10-15% decrease in spring and summer sea-ice in the northern hemisphere. Other observed changes that have been linked to climate change include longer growing seasons, increases in rainfall and rainfall intensity in the northern hemisphere, and shifts in when ice freezes and breaks up on rivers and lakes. Despite the evidence that scientists have uncovered related to changes in climate, there continues to be uncertainty around the chief causes of climate change and their potential impacts. These uncertainties stem from the science itself, as well as from human behavior, especially as it relates to the amount of natural climatic variability and greenhouse gas emissions. Many of these factors will continue to depend on human behavior, influenced by effects on health and the quality of life, technological advances, and policy changes.  Abrupt Climate Change: Inevitable Surprises The National Research Council established a committee to assess the state of knowledge about abrupt climate change and to make recommendations for further research. This 2002 report describes what is known about the causes of abrupt climate change, and the potential economic and ecological impacts. Pew Center on Global Climate Change The Pew Center is an independent, non-partisan organization dedicated to providing information and innovative solutions to addressing climate change. The website offers an excellent set of resources that are useful for teachers and more advanced students. Ocean and Climate Change Institute The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute has several resources related to climate change, global warming, and ocean monitoring systems. They include an excellent FAQ and up-to-date research. The History of Climate Change The American Institute of Physics provides a 'hypertext' that explores the history of climate change. The site contains information on climate data, climate influences, theories, references and links. It also allows a search of all essays by key word. What is Global Warming? The Weather Channel's Forecast Earth is a comprehensive website on climate change and global warming that includes a glossary of terms as well as frequently asked questions.

DATA & MAPS
NASA & USGS Produce Detailed Satellite Views of Antarctica Researchers have creaed the most detailed, high resolution map ever produced of Antarctica. The high resolution sensitivity of the Landsat Image Mosaic of Antarctica (LIMA) sensor will be able to record subtle variations in ice sheet surface, the flow of the ice sheet, and changes in the ice sheet's surface. United Nations Environment Programme: Potential Impacts of Climate Change The UNEP presents this set of graphics displaying the potential impacts of climate change on various areas, including forests, the cryosphere, oceans and coastal regions, freshwater regions as well as on human health.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">FOR THE CLASSROOM
<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #55aa00; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;">Global Climate Change Research Explorer The Exploratorium has a terrific site for studying climate change, with links to real-time NOAA imagery and graphs with explanations clear enough for students to understand. One can explore scientific data relating to the atmosphere, the oceans, areas covered by ice and snow, and the living organisms in all these domains. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #55aa00; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;">Global Warming: Early Warning Signs The Union of Concerned Scientists produced a set of teaching materials that encourages students to collect and analyze data, drawing their own conclusions on issues related to global warming. While UCS is an advocacy organization, the lesson plans are scientifically accurate, pedagogically sound, and do not reflect a bias. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #55aa00; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-decoration: none;">Ice, Ice, Baby In this NY Times Learning Network lesson, middle and high school students can explore the causes and effects of melting ice formations in Antarctica. Students then research different aspects of the topic in order to create a news special. [Grades 6-12] []

<span style="color: #010101; display: block; font-family: 'Arial Black',Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">OUR GOAL... <span style="color: #664444; display: block; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">//...should be a safe, livable future.//


 * To get there, we have less than a decade left to dramatically cut our climate changing emissions from burning fossil fuels.** Maybe not even that long. Each and every one of us must re-create our lives, now, to preserve hope for a livable future for ourself and our children.


 * Scientists say the planet is reaching "tipping points**" in which feedback loops will increase warming and climate change in an upward and unstoppable spiral.


 * It has happened many times before in earth's history...each time with disastrous consequences for nearly every living thing**.

[] <span style="color: #664444; display: block; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"> <span style="color: #664444; display: block; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"> <span style="color: #664444; display: block; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"> <span style="color: #664444; display: block; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"> <span style="color: #664444; display: block; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"> <span style="color: #664444; display: block; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"> <span style="color: #664444; display: block; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"> []
 * The earth is already reacting far faster and stronger** to our climate changing emissions than even the worst case scenarios of scientists just a few years ago. Time is running out. <span style="color: #664444; display: block; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">



<span style="color: #333333; font-family: ULight,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;">It is certain that increased greenhouse gas emissions from the burning of fossil fuels and from land use change lead to a warming of climate, and it is very likely that these green house gases are the dominant cause of the global warming that has been taking place over the last 50 years. <span style="color: #333333; font-family: ULight,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;">Whilst the extent of climate change is often expressed in a single figure – global temperature – the effects of climate change (such as temperature, precipitation and the frequency of extreme weather events) will vary greatly from place to place. <span style="color: #333333; font-family: ULight,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;">Increasing atmospheric CO2 also leads to ocean acidification which risks profound impacts on many marine ecosystems and in turn the societies which depend on them. <span style="color: #333333; font-family: ULight,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;">The Society has worked on the issue of climate change for many years to further the understanding of this issue. These activities have been informed by decades of publicly available, peer-reviewed studies by thousands of scientists across a wide range of disciplines. Climate science, like any other scientific discipline, develops through vigorous debates between experts, but there is an overwhelming consensus regarding its fundamentals. Climate science has a firm basis in physics and is supported by a wealth of evidence from real world observations. [] <span style="color: #333333; font-family: ULight,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;"> <span style="color: #333333; font-family: ULight,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;">