There it is. February, 2016 is in the books as the warmest month in recorded history. As predicted earlier, 2016 is expected to be the warmest year in recorded history, topping the previous warmest year in recorded history, 2015.
Nor is this jump in global temperature a freak triggered by an unusually severe El Niño, say researchers. “It is the opposite,” said Professor David Vaughan of the British Antarctic Survey. “This is a catch-up of a recent hiatus that has occurred in rising global temperatures. We are returning to normality: rising temperatures. This is an absolute warning of the dangers that lie ahead.”
The Guardian story linked above has all the gory details. Help yourself.
4 comments:
The evidence keeps piling up, Mound. But we don't seem to be paying attention.
I've travelled a fair bit. Asia has ABCs over every major city and much of the non urban areas as well. ABC=Atmospheric Brown Cloud
http://www.nature.com/ngeo/journal/v4/n6/images/ngeo1166-f1.jpg
Particulate in the air. Bad for breathing... living in general. But guess what? They are ameliorating global warming. Big time.
I recently saw a reports that speculates that the major clean up of the atmosphere over N. America and especially Europe (over the last 50 years) has increased the warming in the Arctic.
What to do?
I know the Chinese are working to reduce their emissions but that's a long shot from 'ameliorating global warming.' Stalled emissions, partly from a sudden reduction in economic activity, isn't going to cut it. China has to get its economy off coal power and that's going to take years.
There is a group that supports aerosols in the upper atmosphere as a means to reflect sunlight back into space which I think you're referring to over North America. The link between that and the Arctic warming, however, sounds more than a bit fishy.
Removal of aerosols: With the necessary dramatic cuts in emissions, there will also be a dramatic fall in aerosols that currently mask the full warming of greenhouse gases. From 1850 to 2010, anthropogenic aerosols brought about a decrease of ∼2.53 K, says a recent paper. In addition, more aerosols are likely to be emitted now than in 2010, so the current masking effect of aerosols may be even higher. Stopping aerosol release may raise temperatures by 0.4°C or 0.72°F (low) to 2.5°C or 4.5°F (high), and when stopped abruptly this may happen in a matter of weeks.
http://arctic-news.blogspot.ca/2016/03/february-temperature.html
Hey, I am not promoting anything... just pointing out the 'law of unintended consequences'....Fixing 'air pollution' (ie particulate not gasses) will goose warming.
If it wasn't for Fukushima et al I'd be a nuclear advocate.
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