There's a dimmer switch inside the sun that causes its brightness to rise and fall on timescales of around 100,000 years - exactly the same period as between ice ages on Earth. So says a physicist who has created a computer model of our star's core.
Robert Ehrlich of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, modelled the effect of temperature fluctuations in the sun's interior. According to the standard view, the temperature of the sun's core is held constant by the opposing pressures of gravity and nuclear fusion. However, Ehrlich believed that slight variations should be possible.
Earth Changes
The most important report on the science of climate change for six years is set for release on Friday 2 February, and leaks suggest it will be an alarming read.
The minimum predicted temperature and sea level rises will jump, according to media reports, while the blame will be pinned firmly on greenhouse gas emissions from human activities. Its leading line is expected to be "there is a 90% chance humans are responsible for climate change", mostly due to the burning of fossil fuels.
That contrasts with the last version of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's report, issued in 2001, which concluded there was a 66% chance that humans were responsible for rising temperatures.
The minimum predicted temperature and sea level rises will jump, according to media reports, while the blame will be pinned firmly on greenhouse gas emissions from human activities. Its leading line is expected to be "there is a 90% chance humans are responsible for climate change", mostly due to the burning of fossil fuels.
That contrasts with the last version of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's report, issued in 2001, which concluded there was a 66% chance that humans were responsible for rising temperatures.
A magnitude 6.7 earthquake rocked the coast of Australia's remote Macquarie Island today, the US Geological Survey said.
The quake struck west of Macquarie Island at 2.54pm local time (4.54am Irish time), and was centred six miles below the seabed. The US Geological Survey originally recorded the quake as a 6.3 magnitude, but later upgraded the quake to 6.7.
Stuart Koyanagi, a geophysicist at the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre at Ewa Beach, Hawaii, said the quake was unlikely to generate a major Pacific-wide tsunami.
"Normally at this magnitude we don't expect any kind of destructive tsunami," he said.
The quake struck west of Macquarie Island at 2.54pm local time (4.54am Irish time), and was centred six miles below the seabed. The US Geological Survey originally recorded the quake as a 6.3 magnitude, but later upgraded the quake to 6.7.
Stuart Koyanagi, a geophysicist at the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre at Ewa Beach, Hawaii, said the quake was unlikely to generate a major Pacific-wide tsunami.
"Normally at this magnitude we don't expect any kind of destructive tsunami," he said.
COMBLOUX, France - There is no longer any doubt about the reality of global warming and the speed at which it is developing is a "major risk", a senior expert says.
"Is the climate changing? For the past few years there is no longer any doubt about it," said Herve le Treut, one of the world's top climate scientists who muster in Paris on Monday.
"Is the climate changing? For the past few years there is no longer any doubt about it," said Herve le Treut, one of the world's top climate scientists who muster in Paris on Monday.
Los Angeles - Fish caught off Los Angeles County's coast still contain high levels of banned DDT decades after a manufacturer dumped tons of the pesticide into sewers, creating a toxic plume on the ocean bottom.
There has been no improvement since the last regional fish survey was conducted in the late 1980s, according to a federal survey based on data collected mainly in 2002 but only recently released.
There has been no improvement since the last regional fish survey was conducted in the late 1980s, according to a federal survey based on data collected mainly in 2002 but only recently released.
PARIS - Scientists from around the world gathered Monday in Paris to finalize a long-awaited, authoritative report on climate change, expected to give a grim warning of rising temperatures and sea levels worldwide.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is to unveil its latest assessment of the environmental threat posed by global warming on Friday.
As the panel meets, the planet is the warmest it has been in thousands of years - if not more - and international concern over what to do about it is at an all-time high.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is to unveil its latest assessment of the environmental threat posed by global warming on Friday.
As the panel meets, the planet is the warmest it has been in thousands of years - if not more - and international concern over what to do about it is at an all-time high.
NEW YORK - One month into one of the mildest winters on record in the Northeast, an arctic blast sent temperatures into the danger zone Friday, and New York gave its police legal authority to remove homeless people from the streets to keep them from freezing to death.
NORTH SHORE -- Another duck die-off hit the waters of Clear Lake this weekend, claiming 1,145 waterfowl as of 4 p.m. Experts are tentatively saying avian cholera is the culprit this time, pending lab confirmation.
Avian cholera affects birds so quickly that they have been known to sometimes literally drop out of the sky or die while swimming, according to the National Wildlife Health Center. Approximately 40 percent of the affected birds die; those who don't become carriers.
Avian cholera affects birds so quickly that they have been known to sometimes literally drop out of the sky or die while swimming, according to the National Wildlife Health Center. Approximately 40 percent of the affected birds die; those who don't become carriers.
In a rare instance of icy-cold January weather, much of the Northeast awoke Tuesday morning to find itself buried under nearly 1.5 inches of snowfall.
|
CLIMATE change is real and set to cause dramatic temperature rises in the coming century, according to a leaked draft of a major United Nations report.
The study, by a panel of 2,500 scientists who advise the UN, is the most complete overview of climate-change science and will be published next month by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) after a final review.
The IPCC's reports are regarded by many environmentalists as cautious, because the findings have to be agreed by member states including oil-producing countries such as Saudi Arabia.
The draft, which was leaked by scientific sources, says it is "very likely" - more than a 90 per cent chance - that human activities, led by burning fossil fuels, are to blame for warming since 1950. The previous report in 2001 said the link was "likely".
It projects temperatures will rise by 2-4.5C (3.6-8.1F) above pre-industrial levels, with a "best estimate" of a 3C (5.4F) rise, assuming carbon-dioxide levels are stabilising at about 45 per cent above current levels. The European Union says any temperature rise above 2C will cause "dangerous" changes.
