Why is global warming still being discussed??

Question

I just don't get it. This whole global warming debate has been going on and on and no matter what, nothing we can do can keep the sun from getting hotter. So why do we keep fighting with the other nations and people to 'go green'? Sure, going green is great and has no major downside, but continuing to put blame on other people for global warming is getting us no where.

Al Gore is such a hypocrit, too. He blames us for wasting resources when he's the one with the huge mansion using 80 times more natural gas than the average american.

So why do we continue to blame humans? Why do we continue to believe that we have caused the earth to rise in temperature? In the 70's, when CO2 levels were higher in the atmosphere than they are now, the temperatures were declining, almost showing signs that we could fall into another small ice age like in the 1700s.

I think its time for us to move on from this debate. Just ask Mars, even their ice cap is shrinking each year :( poor Mars.

Answer 1

Here is truth about global warming:

Global warming is one-half of the climatic cycle of warming and cooling.
The earth's mean temperature cycles around the freezing point of water.
This is a completely natural phenomenon which has been going on since there has been water on this planet. It is driven by the sun.
Our planet is currently emerging from a 'mini ice age', so is
becoming warmer and may return to the point at which Greenland is again usable as farmland (as it has been in recorded history).
As the polar ice caps decrease, the amount of fresh water mixing with oceanic water will slow and perhaps stop the thermohaline cycle (the oceanic heat 'conveyor' which, among other things, keeps the U.S. east coast warm).
When this cycle slows/stops, the planet will cool again and begin to enter another ice age.

It's been happening for millions of years.

The worrisome and brutal predictions of drastic climate effects are based on computer models, NOT CLIMATE HISTORY.
As you probably know, computer models are not the most reliable of sources, especially when used to 'predict' chaotic systems such as weather.

Global warming/cooling, AKA 'climate change':
Humans did not cause it.
Humans cannot stop it.

Answer 2

Because there is still a lot of confusion on the subject, and unfortunately some of it is yours. CO2 levels in the 70's were ten percent less than they are now. And this may -- or may not -- mean something; the only data is from computer simulations, which are notoriously iffy. The sun's radiation level is not changing much, but varying numbers of sunspots cause it to change somewhat. There may be other effects as well.
global warming is our faults. from the exaustion of our cars to the oil plants that provide us with heating oil, we create pollution. pollution breaks down our ozone layer which reflects off some of the sun. without ozone layer perfectly intact, more sun gets though--->more heat on earth surface--> ice caps malt--->fresh water increases into saline oceans---->oh no!

Answer 3

ok the sun is not getting hotter, theres more co2 in the atmosphere than in the 70's , the air quality is somewhat cleaner, but in all the earth has heated and cooled several times since its beginning, and we need to keep on the subject to find ways to better the planet for the generations to come just like people before us have made life "easier". becasue we are now educated on the subject its time to do the human thing and try to "fix" problems we have created....

we cant fix the problem , we can only slow the rate of degeneration

Answer 4

Because the scientific data PROVES it isn't the Sun. People measure the Sun. Over and over. These are not just my statements, the links are proof.

Radiation from the Sun has actually been decreasing a bit while temperatures go up.

http://www.pubs.royalsoc.ac.uk/media/proceedings_a/rspa20071880.pdf

CO2 levels were not higher in the 70s.

http://scrippsco2.ucsd.edu/graphics_gallery/mauna_loa_record/mlo_record.html

Mars is warming for other reasons and most of the planets aren't warming.

http://environment.newscientist.com/channel/earth/climate-change/dn11642

Do you think thousands of scientists are wrong?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_opinion_on_climate_change
http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/306/5702/1686

"There's a better scientific consensus on this [climate change] than on any issue I know... Global warming is almost a no-brainer at this point. You really can't find intelligent, quantitative arguments to make it go away."

Dr. Jerry Mahlman, NOAA

Good websites for more info:

http://profend.com/global-warming/
http://environment.newscientist.com/channel/earth/dn11462
http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/science/

Answer 5

Because some people still refuse to look at real facts but instead they choose to rely on misinformation campaigns like:
* vulcanoes emitting more CO2 than humans - not true
* the sun is getting hotter - where's the data?
* it has been warmer in the past - not relevant since that doesn't mean it's harmless now.
* Al Gore is a hypocrite - The most rediculus argument of them all. What has THAT got to do with the truth about global warming?
* Mars is getting hotter - What about all the other planets in our solar system? Not all planets shows signs of this warming (which may not even be "global") which should be the case if the sun was the cause, right?
*CO2 levels where higher in the 70th - This one was new to me - and untrue!

Answer 6

The debate will gradually die down when we find something else to get excited about. People have shown they prefer sensationalism to reliable data.

Environmental doomsday scenarios have been around for a long time too - long before All Gore. Like most people I think preserving the environment is important, but junk science is not going to solve anything.

BTW, I'm quite sure that CO2 levels are rising in the atmosphere and will continue to do so. All the coal and oil we consume turns fossilised carbon into CO2.

Answer 7

Well,this is really a tough question to answer.Global warming is a condition which can cause the entire human race to face a lot of problems.Its being discussed because it creates an awareness in the young minds.But it has been a bit weird when they start blaming people for this condition,though its "us" who is the culprit ...just by blaming some one it surely cant create awareness.I think the best way to avoid global warming is to just educate kids about it in a way that they really fear polluting the environment.Well, this may sound unconvining to many...but a practical approach is necessary but not the"blame-game" type!!!!!what say?????

Answer 8

First off, CO2 levels were not higher in the 70's than they are today. Today's CO2 level is higher than it has been in several million years.
http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/ccgg/trends/co2_data_mlo.html

Second, the case for human-caused global warming is about as strong as it gets.

1. If the Sun is causing the current warmth, then we're getting more energy, and the whole atmosphere should be getting warmer. But if it's greenhouse, then we're getting the same amount of energy, but it's being distributed differently: more heat is trapped at the surface, and less heat is escaping to the stratosphere. So if it's the Sun, the stratosphere should be warming, but if it's greenhouse, the stratosphere should be cooling.

In fact, the stratosphere has been on a long-term cooling trend ever since we've been keeping radiosonde balloon records in the 1950's. Here's the data:
http://hadobs.metoffice.com/hadat/images/update_images/global_upper_air.png
http://hadobs.metoffice.com/hadat/hadat2/hadat2_monthly_global_mean.txt
http://cdiac.ornl.gov/trends/temp/sterin/sterin.html

2. If it's the Sun, we're getting more energy during the day, and daytime temperatures should be rising fastest. But if it's greenhouse, we're losing less heat at night, and nighttime temperatures should be rising fastest. So if it's the sun, the difference between day and night temperatures should be increasing, but if it's greenhouse, the day-night difference should be decreasing.

In fact, the daily temperature range has been decreasing throughout the 20th century. Here's the science:
http://ams.allenpress.com/perlserv/?request=get-abstract&doi=10.1175%2F1520-0450(1984)023%3C1489:DDTRIT%3E2.0.CO%3B2
http://ams.allenpress.com/perlserv/?request=get-abstract&doi=10.1175%2F1520-0477(1993)074%3C1007%3AANPORG%3E2.0.CO%3B2
http://www.bom.gov.au/bmrc/clfor/cfstaff/jma/2004GL019998.pdf

3. Total solar irradiance has been measured by satellite since 1978, and during that time it has shown the normal 11-year cycle, but no long-term trend. Here's the data:
http://www.acrim.com/ACRIM%20Composite%20Graphics.htm

4. Scientists have looked closely at the solar hypothesis and have strongly refuted it. Here's the peer-reviewed science:
http://www.pubs.royalsoc.ac.uk/media/proceedings_a/rspa20071880.pdf
http://www.mpa-garching.mpg.de/mpa/publications/preprints/pp2006/MPA2001.pdf

5. CO2 levels in the air were stable for 10,000 years prior to the industrial revolution, at about 280 parts per million by volume (ppmv). Since 1800, CO2 levels have risen 38%, to 384 ppmv, with no end in sight. Here's the modern data...
http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/ccgg/trends/
... and the ice core data ...
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/icecore/antarctica/law/law.html
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/icecore/antarctica/domec/domec_epica_data.html
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/icecore/antarctica/vostok/vostok_data.html
... and a graph showing how it fits together:
http://www.columbusnavigation.com/co2.html

6. We know that the excess CO2 in the air is caused by burning of fossil fuels, for two reasons. First, because the sharp rise in atmospheric CO2 started exactly when humans began burning coal in large quantities (see the graph linked above); and second, because when we do isotopic analysis of the CO2 we find increasing amounts of "old" carbon combined with "young" oxygen. Here are the peer-reviewed papers:
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1984JGR....8911731S
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/mksg/teb/1999/00000051/00000002/art00005
http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/256/5053/74

So to answer your question: the reason it's still being discussed is that some people, like you, still haven't learned anything about it.

Answer 9

you extremely ought to do your own homework. Ice cores, tree rings, and corals all have alerts of what climate become like contained in the previous. rather taken at the same time (to well-known out any mistakes), those proxy temperature measurements factor out what temperatures prevailed. Ice cores frequently also contain samples of previous atmospheres. although the instruct is making a particular declare that atmospheric CO2 hasn't replaced, that you opt for to instruct previous and cutting-edge atmospheric CO2 measurements to instruct.

Answer 10

Because there is still a lot of confusion on the subject, and unfortunately some of it is yours. CO2 levels in the 70's were ten percent less than they are now. And this may -- or may not -- mean something; the only data is from computer simulations, which are notoriously iffy. The sun's radiation level is not changing much, but varying numbers of sunspots cause it to change somewhat. There may be other effects as well. For CO2 data, see: