What happened to global warming?

[avgas]

The climate change noise has drowned out the basic intent of the international treaties like Kyoto. It's to stop pollution. Somehow this got sidetracked into arguments about whether the climate is changing, and if we can make any difference. Pollution got forgotten.

Love this comment. Perfecto.
Shame really - As Kyoto is such a lovely place, when you go there you hope the whole world is like it

[ukusa]

dredged this up, got the heat pump on tonight, bloody cold summer night.

[LBD]

At the end of the day, Global warming or Climate change CO2, Methane, Ozone or what ever, We cannot be taking millions of litres and millions of tons of fossel fuels from an inert state in the ground, and burn them, converting them to gasses and particulate matter in the atmosphere without having an affect on the world we live in....

[idb]

At the end of the day, Global warming or Climate change CO2, Methane, Ozone or what ever, We cannot be taking millions of litres and millions of tons of fossel fuels from an inert state in the ground, and burn them, converting them to gasses and particulate matter in the atmosphere without having an affect on the world we live in....

Everything we do has an effect on our world http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butterfly_effect

Who's to say that burning the ancient remains of dead fish is any worse than keeping free range chooks?

[LBD]

Everything we do has an effect on our world http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butterfly_effect

Who's to say that burning the ancient remains of dead fish is any worse than keeping free range chooks?

I do for one...chooks feed on grain ...part of the carbon cycle above ground. Comparing chooks, with taking relitively inert fossil fuels from below ground and converting them to gasses and particulate matter in the atmosphere is like comparing an egg with a volcano....

[Swoop]

I suspect that the United Kingdom is thankful for "global warming" and the warmth it delivers...

[crazyhorse]

I'm not complaining - sounds like we are one of the few places who have had a summer. Rain was predicted all week, but we still took some of the highest temps for the country and only had rain on Monday, the rest have been great riding, summer days.

Here's some sun for the rest of you who are lacking in it

[one fast tl1ooo]

I'm not complaining - sounds like we are one of the few places who have had a summer. Rain was predicted all week, but we still took some of the highest temps for the country and only had rain on Monday, the rest have been great riding, summer days.

Here's some sun for the rest of you who are lacking in it

Yip sunny hb

[Jantar]

At the end of the day, Global warming or Climate change CO2, Methane, Ozone or what ever, We cannot be taking millions of litres and millions of tons of fossel fuels from an inert state in the ground, and burn them, converting them to gasses and particulate matter in the atmosphere without having an affect on the world we live in....

Having an effect on the world we live in, and causing global climate change is two different things completely.

[idb]

I do for one...chooks feed on grain ...part of the carbon cycle above ground. Comparing chooks, with taking relitively inert fossil fuels from below ground and converting them to gasses and particulate matter in the atmosphere is like comparing an egg with a volcano....

Don't under-estimate the power of an egg, we all come from eggs and apparently we are shagging the planet!

[Winston001]

I suspect that the United Kingdom is thankful for "global warming" and the warmth it delivers...

Climate change is not uniform over the planet and can lead to some counterintuitive results. For example hotter tropical air and water causes more movement of air masses around the equator. These movements drag cold polar air belts north and south with the result that temperate countries experience unexpected cold. That explains what has happened to the UK.

Here in the South Island we are currently in a polar air stream which should be over the Auckland Islands. This is one of the wettest coldest summers in Central Otago that I can recall.

None of this is proof of global warming but it is interesting that it coincides with climate change predictions.

[Jantar]

Climate change is not uniform over the planet and can lead to some counterintuitive results. For example hotter tropical air and water causes more movement of air masses around the equator. These movements drag cold polar air belts north and south with the result that temperate countries experience unexpected cold. That explains what has happened to the UK.

Damn, I've got to go back to university and re-learn meteorogoly 101. Have the Hadley cells shut down? If so what is causing the jet stream and why are we still getting westerly winds in the roaring 40s. I see that this whole science has just been turned on its head. I was taught that a hotter equatorial system will increase the tropical lift which will enhance the doldrums and and cause more severe weather (cyclones and hurricanes) in the tropics. AGW will cause heating in the mid to upper atmosphere in the tropics and shut down the drivers to severe weather. it will also cause warming in the lower atmosphere in the polar regions which will also reduce the drivers for severe weather.

Here in the South Island we are currently in a polar air stream which should be over the Auckland Islands. This is one of the wettest coldest summers in Central Otago that I can recall.

None of this is proof of global warming but it is interesting that it coincides with climate change predictions.

No, we are seeing a typical El-Nino pattern with more lows to the south and more highs to the North east, causing a predominant South-west pattern with its fetch being south of Australia, but not polar. It doesn't fit in the slightest with AGW predictions, but does fit nicely with a negative phase PDO, which is a natural cycle.

[Winston001]

Quite correct Jantar, it is an El Nino pattern but that doesn't mean it isn't connected with global termperature changes which take many many decades.

And incidentally, where did I refer to AGW? Most climate change is driven by natural causes.

What we as humans need to deal with is pollution. The other related issue is overpopulation of the planet.

[Jantar]

..And incidentally, where did I refer to AGW? Most climate change is driven by natural causes. ....

True, but neither AGW nor natural warming will cause polar air to be drawn up to temperate regions. That is a function of an enhanced Hadley system in the lower latitudes which is more aligned with global cooling.

Pollution and over population are a totally seperate discussions, and ones that I would be in agreement with you on.

[Winston001]

True, but neither AGW nor natural warming will cause polar air to be drawn up to temperate regions. That is a function of an enhanced Hadley system in the lower latitudes which is more aligned with global cooling.

I happily bow to your meterological knowledge. However the explanation I posted above for our current cool summer came verbatim from a NZ meterologist interviewed on National Radio 10 days ago. His comments struck me because I had earlier read of some surprising effects of climate change ie. for a few decades some places would be cooler and wetter.

Pollution and over population are a totally seperate discussions, and ones that I would be in agreement with you on.

And this is where I think the whole climate argument has gone off the rails. If we look at the intent of Kyoto/Copenhagen etc it's effect is to reduce pollution. One sad side effect is less food globally as we change to producing bio-fuels which are marginally efficent at best. Bring on the fusion reactors.