Do surface temperature stations like this give you confidence in our temperature measurements?

Question

http://www.norcalblogs.com/watts/images/Tahoe_city3.JPG

I don't know about you, but I sure am ready to institute worldwide climate-change policies based on the measurements of this wonderfully accurate climate station.

anyone who says that rural stations give the same result as urban stations is a liar.

Answer 1

Yikes! I have a birdfeeder in my backyard in better condition than that.

Scary stuff.

btw, the guy above me (gcn) is the charlatan. If we start talking about throwing out arguments based on data manipulation, the entire global warming theory would go out the window.

Answer 2

I'm a little skeptical about the photo's although I'm sure there is bad data getting into the mix. The burn Barrel in the photo is setting on top of a wooden pallet so I wonder if its actually being used as a burn barrel in its shown location.

Still yet there are many examples where measuring stations were placed to increase the temperature.

I'm amazed at the other answers. Apparently the data collected can be good and accurate no matter how inaccurately it is collected. That's a bit of science of which I wasn't aware, must be something new.

There is a phrase us old timers used. GIGO, garbage in = garbage out.

Answer 3

It's ironic but satellite imagery has many draw backs.They can only monitor topological areas using light and heat.They can't do real time studies,virtually everything thing effects the input data.The only real promise it has, is the large scale view and then has to be supplemented with aerial photographs.Local or remote ground weather stations aren't any better.The data is reserved only for the lower portions of the atmosphere which doesn't say a lot for real scientific study,you could do the same thing with home made equipment.They don't have the ability to monitor the upper regions of the atmosphere which might just be the missing key to true weather prediction.The latest I heard they should be coming out with a real time satellite in the future.Last but not lest there are 12 different means to extrapolate STP.I use to think it was simple...

Answer 4

You would be so accurate with that statement but guess what? Meteorologists asked architects, environment and everyone if they were generating heat on the surface of the planet, the answer was no. They didn't respond that they didn't really know because buildings and development are designed in a calculator, then signed off as compliant.

Thermografix Consulting Corporation has one of their directors that has completed over 20 years of specialized temperature imaging outside the calculator to qualify exactly what you asked here.

Go to http://www.thermoguy.com/globalwarming-heatgain.html and follow the science that will change curriculum by giving universities sight of temperature. Go to this link to see their challenge to Western Governors and provinces.

Answer 5

If you are seriously interested in understanding if Watts is a charlatan or not, you should read my answer to this question:

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AiWB3_oIlpTfeg0tA74Uchzty6IX;_ylv=3?qid=20071003181256AA1Zh08&show=7#profile-info-pZi3HXdnaa

and fully digest how Watts plots the data to give the appearance of a problem. But when analyzed more objectively, even sites that he claims are completely corrupted are seen to be equivalent to nearby stations that are fine.

But you really don't want to know he is deluding both himself and you do you? However, failure to be able to do this sort of data analysis is why you skeptics are losing the battle. If you want to prevail, and save yourself from domination by the UN and its surrogates, the Democratic Party, Al Gore, and Starbucks (you heard it here first, Starbucks is in league with the UN), you have to start being able to throw out arguments based on simple data manipulation.

Answer 6

I have every confidence in the temperature measurements because:

Examination of the data shows that there is no difference between the temperature INCREASE noted by urban stations and rural stations. The urban stations are warmer, of course, but they're both INCREASING at the same rate. That's documented scientific fact. You can make claims based on silly right wing blogs and call people names, but I give proof, in the peer reviewed Sources below.

The people who criticize the stations have pictures, and no data to prove their case. The global warming scientists have the data saying this is not altering the measured INCREASE in temperature. This is science, data wins.

Answer 7

Oh wow, you've got photographs. Now I'm convinced.

Nevermind that the "bad" stations have been shown to give the same results as the "good" stations. Nevermind that the rural stations give the same results as the urban stations. Nevermind that warming over the oceans is almost the same as warming over land. Nevermind that satellite data shows the same warming as the surface data. Nevermind that NASA and the Hadley Centre correct for any urban influences.

Nevermind all that, because your photos prove the data is wrong!

*edit* I'm sorry, you're right. The urban and rural stations don't have the same result.

The rural stations actually show slightly more warming than the urban stations.

http://www.grida.no/climate/ipcc_tar/wg1/052.htm#2221
http://www.realclimate.org/index.php?p=43

"Bad" stations (green) vs. "good" stations (red)

http://rabett.blogspot.com/2007/09/and-so-it-goes.html

But don't let the scientific facts and reality get in your way.

http://www.realclimate.org/index.php/archives/2007/07/no-man-is-an-urban-heat-island/langswitch_lang/sk

And keep making amateurish arguments like these.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AtrG6OEcy_8gL6P..0hGeM4jzKIX;_ylv=3?qid=20071228115101AAfYYD6

Answer 8

There is also a station next to a runway at an airport. Completely accurate, I'm sure.

Answer 9

Once again, you are confusing global with regional. The global temperature is computed using thousands of data points to lessen the potential inaccuracies your photo assumes.

Answer 10

Yes, I'm concerned that the fence is so easily scaled so professional skeptics can stage photos like that one.