We have been keeping a close eye on developments with our skeptic friends in Australia. We recently published a fine Open Letter to Aussie politicians by attorney, Val Majkus and articles highlighting the superb analysis of the Climategate emails, by Australian physicist, Dr. John Costella.
Yet again, we feel it is our duty to help our fellow sceptics in Australia again by running this new Open Letter by Mr. Malcolm Roberts. The climate debate is really heating up Down Under. Some Aussie commentators are predicting that Prime Minister Rudd may have to call a "double dissolution" election over his blocked climate bill.
We are very well aware that Australia is likely to be the first country in the world to have an election fought on the climate issue (even though both major parties now have policies to reduce carbon emissions by 5% by 2020, they are fighting each other, and will not compromise). Keen climate observers may recall that the Leader of the Aussie Opposition was ousted just before Copenhagen because he was going to support the Government's cap-and-trade legislation.
Earth Changes
A key component of the scientific argument for anthropogenic global warming (AGW) has been disproven. The results are hiding in plain sight in peer-reviewed journals.
Politicians and scientists still cling to the same hypothesis: Increased emission of CO2 into the atmosphere (by humans) is causing the Earth to warm at such a rate that it threatens our survival. The reality of our global temperatures, the failure of these catastrophic predictions to materialize, and the IPCC scandals all continue to cast serious doubt on that hypothesis.
The only rebuttal given by AGW proponents is that the scandals of the IPCC don't negate the science (i.e., unscrupulous behavior by a few don't negate the rock-solid science), so it seems that the only way to disprove the AGW hypothesis is to address problems with the science. Climate science is very complex, and AGW proponents dismiss the scientific arguments unless the data are contained in journal papers that are "peer-reviewed."
Three peer-reviewed journal contain data contradicting the AGW hypothesis. But before the journal papers are reviewed, here is a little background on the science.
Politicians and scientists still cling to the same hypothesis: Increased emission of CO2 into the atmosphere (by humans) is causing the Earth to warm at such a rate that it threatens our survival. The reality of our global temperatures, the failure of these catastrophic predictions to materialize, and the IPCC scandals all continue to cast serious doubt on that hypothesis.
The only rebuttal given by AGW proponents is that the scandals of the IPCC don't negate the science (i.e., unscrupulous behavior by a few don't negate the rock-solid science), so it seems that the only way to disprove the AGW hypothesis is to address problems with the science. Climate science is very complex, and AGW proponents dismiss the scientific arguments unless the data are contained in journal papers that are "peer-reviewed."
Three peer-reviewed journal contain data contradicting the AGW hypothesis. But before the journal papers are reviewed, here is a little background on the science.
From the Copenhagen Climate Summit south across the freezing North Sea to Climategate Centre (that dull, grey government CRU building in the east of England) is exactly 504 miles, or 810.94 kilometres in European terms. Heavy snowfalls in a massive cold front have engulfed both venues. So much cold and snow is most unusual at this time of year in both these locations. The CRU facility like the city of Norwich close by awoke to no electricity and hundreds of schools have been closed due to the bleak conditions. Right across the South-East of England it's the same kind of whiteout. There are very short odds now for a white Christmas in Denmark and Britain and that hasn't happened in both these maritime nations for decades. How strange when 2009 is officially one of the hottest years on record. That's if anyone still believes those CRU and NASA GISS 'fudged' records. After yesterday the biggest skeptics of all are now the Russians.
As I sat snug eating my morning toast I scrolled through the list of news channels before happening on 'Russia Today' to see what their take was on these matters. Across the bottom of the screen a ticker tape scroll left me in no doubt. There was utter condemnation of the UK Met Office and the data fudging of the Climategate scandal. It was very evident that the Russian mood was just as icy as that in Copenhagen or London. With an area of 17,075,400 square kilometres (6,592,800 sq mi) Russia is by far the largest country in the world. It has got lots of climate data and accounts for the most important 'signal' on the warmist's temperature chart. For it is in this vast region that American and British Climategate scientists had identified the largest rise in temperatures in the last fifty years.
As I sat snug eating my morning toast I scrolled through the list of news channels before happening on 'Russia Today' to see what their take was on these matters. Across the bottom of the screen a ticker tape scroll left me in no doubt. There was utter condemnation of the UK Met Office and the data fudging of the Climategate scandal. It was very evident that the Russian mood was just as icy as that in Copenhagen or London. With an area of 17,075,400 square kilometres (6,592,800 sq mi) Russia is by far the largest country in the world. It has got lots of climate data and accounts for the most important 'signal' on the warmist's temperature chart. For it is in this vast region that American and British Climategate scientists had identified the largest rise in temperatures in the last fifty years.
The global warming crisis is now being rebranded as a climate change crisis because it seems that instead of getting warmer, we may actually be getting colder.
Some years ago the New Scientist published a report based on an interview with an Indian glaciologist who predicted that the glaciers in the Himalayas would disappear by 2035 as a result of global warming.
This could have catastrophic water implications for people living in some of the most densely populated areas. As many as half-a-billion people are dependent on water from the Himalayas.
The new data, released in recent weeks, indicates that 30 of the 96 glaciers in the Himalayas actually increased in mass during 2007-2008. Glaciers are also expanding in the Antarctic, New Zealand, and Norway.
Some years ago the New Scientist published a report based on an interview with an Indian glaciologist who predicted that the glaciers in the Himalayas would disappear by 2035 as a result of global warming.
This could have catastrophic water implications for people living in some of the most densely populated areas. As many as half-a-billion people are dependent on water from the Himalayas.
The new data, released in recent weeks, indicates that 30 of the 96 glaciers in the Himalayas actually increased in mass during 2007-2008. Glaciers are also expanding in the Antarctic, New Zealand, and Norway.
Ho boy. The Russian-climate-gate issue is gaining traction in the media. If you haven't heard about this yet, the story is that a leading Russian think-tank claims the British meteorological office has been misrepresenting Russian weather data to manipulate the results and suggest rising temperature trends.
The Moscow Institute of Economic Analysis alleges the Hadley Center for Climate Change used only a quarter of the data provided by Russia. Analysts for the agency imply that climate experts selectively used incomplete reporting that emphasized a warming effect.
The Moscow Institute of Economic Analysis alleges the Hadley Center for Climate Change used only a quarter of the data provided by Russia. Analysts for the agency imply that climate experts selectively used incomplete reporting that emphasized a warming effect.
© Yvo de Boer
De Boer said that he was not quitting the key UN Framework convention on climate change (UNFCCC) post because the Copenhagen climate talks in December were widely seen as a failure. "We were about an inch away from a formal agreement. It was basically in our grasp, but it didn't happen. So that was a pity," he said.
But he was known to have been frustrated by the outcome, and doubtful whether anyone could steer through a major global agreement between wildly diverging rich and poor countries. Today he said hat the talks were "on track," but that he was uncertain that a full treaty could be finalised this year.
The world's largest private sector coal business, the Peabody Energy Company (PEC) has filed a mammoth 240-page "Petition for Reconsideration," a full-blown legal challenge against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The petition must be answered and covers the entire body of leaked emails from 'Climategate' as well as those other 'gate' revelations including the frauds allegedly perpetrated under such sub-headings as 'Himalayan Glaciers,' 'African Agricultural Production,' 'Amazon Rain Forests,' 'Melting Mountain Ice,' 'Netherlands Below Sea Level' as well as those much-publicized abuses of the peer-review literature and so called 'gray literature.' These powerful litigants also draw attention to the proven criminal conduct by climate scientists in refusing to honor Freedom of Information law (FOIA) requests.
Peabody is, in effect, challenging the right of the current U.S. federal government to introduce cap and trade regulations by the 'back door.' In this article we summarize Peabody's legal writ.
The petition must be answered and covers the entire body of leaked emails from 'Climategate' as well as those other 'gate' revelations including the frauds allegedly perpetrated under such sub-headings as 'Himalayan Glaciers,' 'African Agricultural Production,' 'Amazon Rain Forests,' 'Melting Mountain Ice,' 'Netherlands Below Sea Level' as well as those much-publicized abuses of the peer-review literature and so called 'gray literature.' These powerful litigants also draw attention to the proven criminal conduct by climate scientists in refusing to honor Freedom of Information law (FOIA) requests.
Peabody is, in effect, challenging the right of the current U.S. federal government to introduce cap and trade regulations by the 'back door.' In this article we summarize Peabody's legal writ.
© USGS
Though area residents said they did not feel the quake, office towers in Beijing - about 770 miles (1,240 kilometers) away from the epicenter - swayed slightly for about a minute.
The quake occurred 335 miles (540 kilometers) below the earth's surface.
With earthquakes centered deep underground, sometimes those close to the epicenter don't feel it while people further away notice some shaking, said the duty officer at the Seismological Bureau of Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in northeast China's Jilin province. He refused to give his name as is common among Chinese officials.
The Korea Earthquake Research Center said there was no damage in North or South Korea and that quakes occur in that region about once a year.
Independent bloggers have found that by using the Pacific Marine Atlas program to plot data from the entire ocean network of automatic measuring stations, there is was actually a downtrend in global sea levels over the past six years.
The Hockey Schtick blog made it's astonishing discovery after analyzing the full 6-year dataset of ocean levels from January 31, 2004 to January 31, 2010.
By using the data from the 'ARGO' global network of sea level measurements it was found that ocean levels have actually been decreasing and not rising, contrary to global warming forecasters. This latest revelation is wholly contrary to claims by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The IPCC has continually argued that human emissions of carbon dioxide were causing the polar ice caps and thousands of glaciers around the world to melt so that such warming would cause global sea levels to rise, according to the IPCC's 35 SRES scenarios, by up to 0.5 meters (18 inches) this century.
By using the data from the 'ARGO' global network of sea level measurements it was found that ocean levels have actually been decreasing and not rising, contrary to global warming forecasters. This latest revelation is wholly contrary to claims by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The IPCC has continually argued that human emissions of carbon dioxide were causing the polar ice caps and thousands of glaciers around the world to melt so that such warming would cause global sea levels to rise, according to the IPCC's 35 SRES scenarios, by up to 0.5 meters (18 inches) this century.
© Artwork by Kate MacDowell; photograph by Dan Kvitka for The New York Times
Residents were distraught over the spread of coal mining in the Upper Hunter. Coal was discovered in eastern Australia more than 200 years ago, but only in the last two decades did the industry begin its exponential rise. Today, more than 100 million tons of black coal are extracted from the valley each year, primarily by open-pit mining, which uses chemical explosives to blast away soil, sediment and rock. The blasts occur several times a day, sending plumes of gray dust over ridges to settle thickly onto roofs, crops and the hides of livestock. Klieg lights provide a constant illumination. Trucks, draglines and idling coal trains emit a constant low-frequency rumble. Rivers and streams have been polluted.
Comment: Well, it does look like the whole Climate Change Fraud is about to really start unraveling. And there are civil suits lodged against the scientists involved in the hacked email exchanges,according to the article. Very interesting to see how this plays out and how long it takes before governments like the US and Australian governments are put under pressure to cancel their cap and trade schemes.