------ THE SKY IS FALLING ------

[Paradox]

This quest for adaptation strategies opens a new chapter in global environmental change research that requires not only continued development of sophisticated climate models (and understanding the processes behind them) but also a new integration of those models with predictive descriptions of human behaviour.

"We need to continue discovering how the Earth system works in order to evaluate the numerous ways that humans can adapt to climate change," says Kevin Noone, IGBP's executive director. The additional challenge is to model unpredictable human behaviour and merge this into deterministic Earth system models, explains Noone.

Latest IPCC report highlights need for integrated climate/human behavior models:

Climate change around the world

My respect for the IPCC has actually been growing as their focus shifts to adaptation measures. Adaptation is the area we need to focus on -- that, and figuring out whether we are going to continue heating or fall into a deep freeze.

~Paradox

[Paradox]

Scientists get last say in climate study

[ecolodge]

Originally Posted by Paradox

Scientists get last say in climate study

Interesting to note that the diplomats, though, were successful in getting compromised political wording of the new IPCC document. China, Saudia Arabia and the US were arguing reporting scientific confidence intervals? Good grief. Haven't seen this new IPCC report - is it up on the web now? (Sorry, Paradox, just didn't follow through on all the links associated with the article). Is the scientists' version (footnotes?) of the report available as well?

[Paradox]

Unusual snowfall has East Texans dreaming of a White Easter

Thousands in Dark After New England Snow

Burrrr. It's been cold.


...must be global warming.

[Paradox]

Previously, much of the concern in the Southwest has involved decreasing snowpack, says atmospheric scientist Steven Ghan of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Wash. "But this is news because it suggests a shift in the precipitation itself."

Climate change threatens new dust bowl in Southwest

[Paradox]

Global warming skeptics find humor in new study
# A report shows that although tropical jungles cool the planet, trees at higher latitudes actually raise temperatures

University of Colorado instruments to launch on NASA cloud mission April 25:

[Series2]

Originally Posted by Paradox

University of Colorado instruments to launch on NASA cloud mission April 25:

I'm looking forward to the results of AIM. Noctilucents are amazing things to see, I was totally gobsmacked the first time I saw one.
I attended a lecture by Ken Kennedy (a British astronomer) about noctilucents recently. What amazes him is that, despite being so awesome, there is no historical record of them before 1885. Man has been recording aurora, comets, meteors and eclipses throughout recorded history, but not noctilucents. If you've ever seen one, you'll appreciate why this is so surprising.

They form 85 Km above the earth, where it's -150°C and (in theory) there shouldn't be anything like enough water vapour up there to produce clouds.

Fascinating.

[Twig6]

Originally Posted by Series2

What amazes him is that, despite being so awesome, there is no historical record of them before 1885.

That's interesting. I guess nocilucents are thought to be byproducts of the industrial revolution then?

Scientists cite the Industrial Revolution as evidence that greenhouse gases play a role in the cloud's formation.

During the Industrial Revolution, factories began pouring greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. The first sightings of noctilucents occurred during this time and have increased ever since as the world became more industrialized.

"There is now increased interest in these clouds because of their possible role as markers of global change in the upper atmosphere," said Gary Thomas, professor of physics at the University of Colorado. "

Noctilucent Clouds

[Skeptic]

Twig said :

That's interesting. I guess nocilucents are thought to be byproducts of the industrial revolution then?

Lots of things were not recorded in the old days. That is more a reflection of the tools available for observation than anything else.

[Paradox]

Warming could spark water scramble: experts

Climate change set to erode house values