Global Warming.. (In your opinion) Caused by us , or Just the normal cycle of climate change throughout time?

Answer 1

This particular incidence of global warming is most definitely caused by us. The rate of warming is unprecedented as is the rate of rise of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, no natural cause can account for what we are experiencing. We are engaged in a very dangerous experiment.

Answer 2

There is a natural climate cycle, but we are throwing it off. The IPCC panel of scientist have now stated that it is highly likely (>90%) that humans are the main contributing facto to climate change.

You should ignore those who claim "it's solar, all planets are warming", as they really don't understand the phenomenology of climate change. The scientists are smart enough to include solar variations into their models.

We have dozens of satellites monitoring hundreds of climate parameters on our planet. We know the climate is changing here. For other planets, we can only infer that they MIGHT be warming. Add this to the fact that as far as other planets go we know hardly anything about their climatological dynamics, and they really have no support. As an example, Saturn and Jupiter are far enough away that most of their "heat" is not really effected by the sun. They generate heat internally. A case and point, the Cassini probe has no solar panels as they would have to be mosntrous in order to collect enough sunlight to power the probe.

You don't go to a car mechanic to get a physical. You shouldn't go to the general public for climate change. Listen to the experts. They know what they're talking about.

~X~

Answer 3

I am not sure. The scientists can't even agree...

In 2007 the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change forecasted that by 2100 global average surface temperatures would increase 3.2–7.2 °F (1.8–4.0 °C), depending on a range of scenarios for greenhouse gas emissions, and stated that it was now 90 percent certain that most of the warming observed over the previous half century could be attributed to greenhouse gas emissions produced by human activities (i.e., industrial processes and transportation). Many scientists predict that such an increase in temperature would cause polar ice caps and mountain glaciers to melt rapidly, significantly raising the levels of coastal waters, and would produce new patterns and extremes of drought and rainfall, seriously disrupting food production in certain regions. Other scientists maintain that such predictions are overstated. The 1992 Earth Summit and the 1997 Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change attempted to address the issue of global warming, but in both cases the efforts were hindered by conflicting national economic agendas and disputes between developed and developing nations over the cost and consequences of reducing emissions of greenhouse gases.

Answer 4

We have to be a factor. Never before have so many people been on the earth and doing things that change it. More people, more fuels burned, more trees cut, more cows being raised (producing methane), etc. However, I'm not ruling out natural cycles, too. It could be a combination of both. We should do what we can to limit human impact. That's only sensible. Even if it's a natural cycle, we could help things by lessening our impact. No reason to add to it, even if it is natural.

Answer 5

Global Warming is a normal cycle through time...
It is just that in the last century we have sent CO2 emissions OFF THE SCALE compared with any previous historical period! (That is the activity of Man - machines/industry/burning fossil fuels, etc, etc...and all indications are that with India and China making rapid headway in the global economy they will likely re-double ...or even 're-quintuple' the amount of CO2 being emitted!!!)

Noone really knows what, if any, effect this massive peak in CO2 will actually have in the coming decades/centuries/millennia!

There are two distinct groups that are vying for public approval -- the 'Humans will destroy the planet via Global Warming' brigade, and the 'We can emit all the gases we want and Global Warming is just normal' gang...

Do not be misled by either -- NOONE knows what our activities will really result in -- it is all a great and thoughtless experiemnt we are subjecting the world to in the name of 'progress'!!!

Answer 6

From the early 1900s we burned millions of tons of coal (fossil fuel). Where was the warming then?
Do you know many people with coal fires now?
When the volcanoes were erupting all over the earth the dinosaurs still were alive. Where was the warming then?
They died of the cold !!!
Global warming is a great newspaper seller.
Do you ever hear of the Africans saying " hey it's getting warmer here"?
Because the colder countries are getting better weather they say " hey there must be something wrong".
Enjoy it and get a tan !!!
Don't buy newspapers!!!
Multimedia hysterics !!!

Answer 7

Global warming is real and mostly caused by us. Three reasons, with solid support, most important first.

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

Science is quite good about exposing bad science or hoaxes:

http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/ATG/polywater.html

There's a large number of people who agree that it is, who are not liberals, environmentalists, stupid, or conceivably part of a "conspiracy". Just four examples of many:

"I wasn’t convinced by a person or any interest group—it was the data that got me. I was utterly convinced of this connection between the burning of fossil fuels and climate change. And I was convinced that if we didn’t do something about this, we would be in deep trouble.”

Vice Admiral Richard H. Truly, USN (Ret.)
Former NASA Administrator, Shuttle Astronaut and the first Commander of the Naval Space Command

"Global warming is real, now, and it must be addressed."

Lee Scott, CEO, Wal-Mart

"Our nation has both an obligation and self-interest in facing head-on the serious environmental, economic and national security threat posed by global warming."

Senator John McCain, Republican, Arizona

“DuPont believes that action is warranted, not further debate."

Charles O. Holliday, Jr., CEO, DuPont

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 websites for more info:

http://profend.com/global-warming/

http://www.realclimate.org

"climate science from climate scientists"

The "swindle" movie (and its' "science") are wrong. It is simply a political statement which distorts science. The director has a history of putting out misleading stuff. In 1997 he made a series for Channel 4 called “Against Nature”, which compared environmentalists with Nazis. Channel 4 had to apologise for the misleading stuff in that one. The present movie is also a distortion of the science. More here:

http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/climate_change/article2355956.ece

"A Channel 4 documentary claimed that climate change was a conspiratorial lie. But an analysis of the evidence it used shows the film was riddled with distortions and errors."

http://www.medialens.org/alerts/07/0313pure_propaganda_the.php

"Pure Propaganda"

http://www.realclimate.org/index.php/archives/2007/03/swindled/

Explanations of why the science is wrong.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Durkin_(television_director)

History of the director.

http://environment.guardian.co.uk/climatechange/story/0,,2032572,00.html

"The science might be bunkum, the research discredited. But all that counts for Channel 4 is generating controversy."

Gore's movie may be a little over dramatic, but it has the basic science right. This movie does not.

Channel 4 itself undercuts the movie in a funny way. If you go to their website on the movie you find links to real global warming information. They also have a way to "Ask the Expert" about global warming. The questions go to a respected mainstream scientist who supports (mostly) human responsibility for global warming.

Answer 8

Normal cycle. Note the current trend in our solar system - all the planets are going through a warm phase. I don't think that burning fossil fuels on our small planet could cause Mars to heat up. I don't know why Global Warming fanatics like to forget that not only is our sun getting bigger, but it's also getting hotter...

Answer 9

The Earth has many problems because of man
this is undeniable ,how much we are responsible for Global warming is debateble ,But there is a definate change in Global temperatures that is affecting nature in a bad way.

this text only covers some aspects of Climate change ,mainly agriculture i.e.effects of deforestation and subsequent man made desertification

water and air polution such as caused by
industrial contamination ,the contaminating effects of the cities(the internal combustion engine) ,are other stories,

and all of these are also man made ,such as the high industrial chimneys pumping contamination into the clouds and the burning of tires,some of this polution has been found in the ice in the polar regions

there are natural cycles in the planets life
but a lot is influenced by mans existance ,and this is increasing with overpopulation,putting strains on Natural resources and increasing contaminations as well as destructions of essential componants the ensure living conditions for all life forms

climate change is caused in great parts by desertification ,and most desertification is caused by man
the thinner ozone layer helps to speed this up.and this is caused mainly by air polution ,also as a result of mans actions

in North Africa,India,Mexico ,millions of people are effected by land loss and desertification and some have died as a result,

And now many animals are becoming sick because of changes in temperature ,
vital links in the food chains are disapearing affecting other species further along in the chain

90% of the feral (wild) bee population in the United States has died out.

In the Netherlands bee diversity is down 80 percent in the sites researched, and that "bee species are declining or have become extinct in Britain."

wildflowers that depend on pollination have dropped by 70 percent

we are witness to a mass exstinction ,for the first time since the dinosaurs, of the earth's estimated 10 million species, 300,000 have vanished in the past 50 years. each years, 3,000 to 30,000 species become extinct.

everything is happening so fast it is not possible to monitor things any more.

,the Sahara is growing by 7 kilometers a year
and most of the desserts we know are a results of mans actions ,and they are increasing ,not getting less ,in the dinosaurs days ,there were few desserts.

collectively this planet is drying up ,

each degree rise in temperature means 10%crop loss

and there is less and less water (because of deforestation),to irrigate this production ,
and there are less and less farmers to do it..
Arable lands and their farms are lost all over the globe. Many farmers sons abandon farming and head for the cities.

Northern China is drying up, what once were millions of food producing people, are now hungry refugees ,running for their lives from the all consuming dust storms.
This will have a great effect on world food prices when they start buying at what ever cost, to feed their people.

The farmers that are left have to feed some 70 million more people than the year before but with less topsoil.

Over the last half century,
Population growth & rising incomes have tripled world grain demand from 640 million tons to 1,855 million

In the near future the global farming community will not be able to feed every body ,food prices will continue to rise. .

RISING SEAS
The northpole is melting ,and we will know it without ice in our life times.
this does not affect the sea level because it is ice that is already in the water.but the melting ice from Green land and the south pole ,are another matter

Global warming could be slowed down to some extent,but it will mean global co operation between all countries ,and taking into account human nature and the world politics ,it is unlikely that this will happen,

At least not untill we are all in the middle of planetary disastres and it becomes a battle for the survival of humanity every where,instead of just some third world countries Source(s) here are a 100 ways to help
http://www.eco-gaia.net/forum-pt/index.p...

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/natur... Source

Answer 10

both
it is caused by human actives
but also by natural pollutants that is caused by nature.
it would be fine if there hadn't been an increase in these in the last 300 years. other wise we need global warming or else we could freeze.