Global climate change

I found that prof. moles raised some very intresting points in our lectures last week. In his talks regarding climate change i picked up on the idea that our view on climate change is over negative to a certain extent. He made it apparent that climate change on itself is a perfectly natural transition over time on the earth. With so many factors affecting our climate it is easy to see how these changes come about. Changes in the earths distance from the sun due to shifts in the earths orbit intuitively means changes in global temperature however marginal. Another major global addition to natural climate change is volcanic eruptions, this large influx of ash, water vapour and dust into the atmosphere can also affect global climate.

The arguement then to mans invlovement is not that he is responsible for directly affecting global climate but rather is unnaturally accelerating it and changing the natural tendencies with the influx of ‘greenhouse gases’ and the loss of carbon sinks due to deforestation. Prof. moles discussion on the possible effects of mans involment in the issue is enough to chill the blood. the idea of runaway warming, a situation where one man made problem affecting global climate change can increase the effects of another cause is mind wreaking. that we could face an unstoppable chain reation which would lead to dramatic climate change on a global scale with little to no action availible to stem it is crazy. With this possibility out there i find it makes little sense trivial matters such as politics can stand in the path of action. As we release more CO2 and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, more heat energy from the sun is absorbed, leading to hinger average temperatures which in turn would melt more of the glaciers, then less energy is reflected back out and this vicious cirle keeps going taking in more factors as it goes.

While i believe action has to be taken i am not so naive to believe that it is going to happen in the immediate future. goverments are trying to sort out the mess in their talks but the information they has is not garenteed accurate . As prof. moles said there are many different methods of measuring the changes expected in climate yet we will not know for sure which is the right model until it happens. The story he told us regarding the controversy in the english university regarding false information being used my climate scientists to alter the results output has major implications. By creating uncertainty in peoples mind it diminishes the problem to an extent. How can people come up wit affirative action when time has to be spent verifiying if the information is true or if it has been tampered with. With such large amounts of wealth at stake in the energy sector this trail of misinformation will not stop here i believe. only trough co-operation, unity and truth can this global issue be tackled.

~ by oisindonohue on February 15, 2010.