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> Does anyone know how (if?) the Solar energy output measured on Earth > varies over time? Could it be the global warming is just a result of > increased Sun activity and all the rest has been talk? > BTW, I am not saying we don't have to reduce CO2 emissions - we are > likely to need to breathe for some time to come - I just wonder if > anyone would know these particular figures. > Chris Hofmeyr provided some very interesting ones so far. > "Over time" is pretty relative! Currently stats on global warming are being disputed due to the methods being used to arrive at a definitive figure of merit. There are 500 years of surface measurements (Chinese, and the world), 100+ years of balloon measurements, and a few years of satellite measurements. Surface measurements are questionable over time due to subtle natural and manmade environmental changes at the point of measurement. Try the following article for some information (there is a lot more on the web about disagreements on methods and results be touted concerning global warming: http://www.junkscience.com/sep98/spencer.htm Another article is: "In response to George Melloan's Sept. 22 Global View column concerning Al Gore and global warming: The earth has been warming for the past 10,000 to 15,000 years for reasons that have nothing to do with man-made "greenhouse gasses." The cost to reduce artificial emission of carbon dioxide could thus be a terrible waste. Mr. Melloan correctly notes that we should look to the facts, not to speculative computer models, to understand global climate change. The earth is warming from the last ice age; industrial gas emission is insignificant compared with greenhouse gasses from natural sources, and biologic and geologic processes regulate atmospheric carbon dioxide. The geologic record suggests Earth could stay warm for another 400,000 years, no matter what we put into the air. The latest ice age just ended some 10,000 to 15,000 years ago. Warm periods that alternated with the ice ages of the past two million years persisted for 100,000 to 400,000 years each. A long warming trend unrelated to industrial gasses may have barely started. Industry contributes too little carbon dioxide to affect global climate. Industrial carbon dioxide, six billion tons annually, is a small fraction of the 700 billion tons per year from geologic and biologic processes. Increasing atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide stimulates plant life, which in turn consumes more carbon dioxide. Marine plants, such as calcareous algae, and other reef-forming organisms can sequester vast amounts of carbon dioxide in the calcium carbonate, or limestone, that they produce. Extensive limestone deposits thousands of feet thick that occur throughout the geologic record provide evidence of this process. We accept our inability to prevent regional, transient, climatic catastrophes such as floods, hurricanes and tornadoes, yet people whose economic interest is vested in government grants to study greenhouse gasses claim we can alter global climate change that spans thousands of lifetimes. Victor H. Abadie III, Geologist, Montara, Calif. " High Plains Drifter magn1@jps.net |