is global warming occurring? Have the forecasts of global warming been confirmed by actual measurements?

Answer 1

Yes and Yes.

First, I suggest you read this article:
http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/306/5702/1686

Anyway, on to specific points:

1. Oceans are heating up. Yes, it does take lots of energy to heat the oceans. If they are heating, think about how much energy we've already poured into the global environment. Also, only a few degrees temperature change can make a HUGE difference. The oceans in the arctic are maybe three degrees warmer than they were this point last century, but the arctic ice cap is melting in ways never seen before. For example, there never used to be open water in the canadian archipelego, even in the summer - now, there are miles and miles of open sea.
On the canadian archipelago: http://newark.cms.udel.edu/~cats/healy_2005/science/index.html
On sea ice generally:
http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article1603667.ece

2. Some people will say that solar activity is increasing as part of an 11-year cycle. Yes, solar activity is increasing, but most scientists believe that the effect on the earth's climate has been negligible.
From a NASA press release: "...the solar increases do not have the ability to cause large global temperature increases...greenhouse gases are indeed playing the dominant role..."
Source: http://www.giss.nasa.gov/research/news/19990408/

3. Another frequent response from skeptics is "global cooling," a weather phenomenon that was loudly touted in the 1970s by some scientists. It's true that some climatologists (though not all) believed that we might be in a period of global cooling, it should also be noted that we knew a lot less about weather patterns then than we do now. Scientists also used to believe that the earth was flat, and that the body's health was regulated by the four humours. Now some people claim that the earth is round and that diseases are caused by genes and microbes. According to global warming skeptics who latch onto "global cooling" statements from 30 yeras ago, we should forget everything doctors and geographers say because they said something different once, too. That's not how science works - we learn, we study, we refine, we learn more, we study more...we don't just tell people to shut up because their predecessors were wrong before.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_cooling

4. Many skeptics will say that what humans put out in terms of CO2 is far less than volcanoes, fires, or other animals. As for volcanoes, fires, and animals - those have always been there. They should not have any net effect on the planet's climate. The only changing factor among those and humans is humans and our increased activity.

5. If global temperatures increase, then the temperature difference between temperature zones will remain the same. So there will always be extreme weather events like heavy snowfall in Central Park in April. But you can't look at one data point and use it to make a trend - otherwise, you could say that all white people have red hair, because you just saw a white person with red hair. You'd have to ignore all of the evidence to the contrary.

6. One frequent question skeptics ask is "how did the last ice age end?" Well, that's hard to say. Ice ages have been on cycles for hundreds of millions of years, it's true, but the problem is that the last one ended right about the same time that people discovered farming. That might be a coincidence, but it might not - the question then becomes, "Did mankind's increased use of agriculture alter the CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere and warm up the earth enough to end the last ice age, or did the end of the last ice age contribute to farming?" It's a tough question, but you should read about the Early Anthropocene Hypothesis:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_anthropocene

7. Finally, and I think this is the most persuasive argument ofr why we should change our behavior as a society: Both sides in the global warming debate have something to gain and something to lose. However, the anti-global warming side has much to gain by continuing to fight change - they have a direct expense that they can expect by having to change the way they do things, and by having to find ways to clean up their acts. Keep in mind that some of the most vocal critics of global warming theory are those who are either industry insiders themselves or who are funded by industry. On the flip side, those who are trying to convice the world of the reality of Global Warming have no direct benefit that they will gain - most do not own, say, environmental cleanup businesses. Their benefit is based entirely off of a belief in doing the right thing.

Answer 2

It has been noted that Mars is warming. No, you do not need to be concerned about the temperature on Mars. Yes, it is a good reason to question AGW theory, but by no means a disproof. Martian warming suggests that Global Warming may be driven by variations in Solar intensity. OR Mars could just be going through it's own natural cycle. Global Warming, Cooling and Stability all occur on Earth. The temperature has been stable for the last 10 years. It rose 30 years before that, It fell 25 years before that. Humans have changed our atmosphere's CO2 from ~0.03% to about 0.04%. AGW believers think this has raised the Global temperature ~1 degree over the last 100 years. Personally I think AGW is mostly junk science, because the notion that Man is causing dangerous Global Warming is accepted as an article of FAITH. Virtually none of the research questions this, all efforts go simply to proving it.

Answer 3

Yes, global warming is occuring.
The ice floes and even Greenland have been melting. Climates have been steadily rising- the last few summers in many parts of the United States have had the hottest summers ever recorded.
When ice melts at the North and South Pole, Greenland, and Antarctica, less light is reflected back into the atmosphere and is instead trapped in the atmosphere as heat. This is only one of the reasons for the temperature rise.
If all the ice were to melt the ocean would rise 40 feet. The sea level has gotten higher over last few decades.
The length of the seasons have also been changing. Flowers are blooming months before usual and winter and spring are usually shorter.
Yes, there is significant evidence.

Answer 4

Warming is occurring. Only time will tell if measurements will confirm the forecasts. They revise the forecasts every year, to match what have been observed. So today's measurements match today's revisions of last decade's forecasts. But no, the forecasting has not been particularly accurate if you look at the original forecasts and not the revised ones. All the more alarming forecasts have been wrong, and all the revisions are for less dramatic changes.

Answer 5

Temperatures have overall risen over the past 160 or so years (the years for which accurate records exist), apart from a period of 40 years after ww2 when they fell. This may or may not be a long term trend - 160 years is a drop in the ocean compared to the age of Earth.

The reasons for the warming are contested. Man made emissions may or may not play a part ranging from 0% to 40% of the effect.

Answer 6

In what part of the world? January 2007 In New England, it was in the mid to upper 70's. were almost into May and we have 20's 30's. We can cut back on fossil fuels, but what ever they put in its place will cost us more, and the gov. and wealthy own it now. There are laws about burning wood because its easy to get it free. paper and card board start forest fires (when unfire) candels cause house fires, keros ene fumes are bad for your health. If you have a wind mill for electricity, they say you are stealing from the electric Co.s then your arrested. Solar pannels are great, but who can afford the batterys to store the energy in? the wealthy. Oh yeah battery acid is hazardous to the enviroment. The science channel says that earth is made of magnatized molten lava, now thats hot. heat rises. Put earth in a baloon, the heat will only rise as far as the baloon will let it, the baloon is our ozone layer, the air between earth and baloon is our atmosphere. you poke enough holes in that baloon with rockets, space shuttles and what-not, its gone, the heat from the sun gets to the earths surface, the heat within the earth meets with the heat of the sun, WHALA. I don't know about you but im 58 there isn't anything I can do to protect my great grandchildren from what is inevitable. Its called EVOLUTION Pass it on. Heres something to chew on: CLONED FRUIT & VEGETABLES (Science channel 4/13/07)

Answer 7

Don't follow the crowd on this one. When the media figures out that the real story is the rotten science, the exaggerations, the truncated data, the conclusion jumping, and the political agenda of the global warmiacs they'll all look like complete idiots.

Answer 8

Quit believing all this garbage we are not putting anymore co^2 in the air that is not there already. If you drink a soda when you open a soda can or bottle you release CO^2.
how many cans or bottles of soda are consumed every minute. there are air factories that manufactor CO^2 all the time for consumer purposes such as making soda and other things this stuff is a bunch of hype. Do a search on Penn and Teller and view the environmental video they have from their BS series. Its all a bunch of hype

Answer 9

Yes.

There's an overwhelming amount of peer reviewed scientific data that says that. Short and long summaries.

http://www.globalwarmingart.com/wiki/Image:Climate_Change_Attribution.png

http://www.ipcc.ch/SPM2feb07.pdf

There's a lot less controversy about this is the real world than there is on Yahoo answers:

http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/articles/home_page/329.php?nid=&id=&pnt=329&lb=hmpg1

And vastly less controversy in the scientific community than you might guess from the few skeptics talked about here:

http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/306/5702/1686

Good website for more info:

http://www.realclimate.org

"climate science from climate scientists"

Answer 10

does counting dead people count as measurements
lots already in china ,India ,Africa ,and some in France, Mexico and there must be many more places by now ,
or does it have to be only Americans ???otherwise it is not global warming