Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Climate Scientist to US Senate: 'Climate Change Is a Clear and Present Danger'

Net human and natural percent contributions to the observed global surface warming over the past 50-65 years according to Tett et al. 2000 (T00, dark blue), Meehl et al. 2004 (M04, red), Stone et al. 2007 (S07, light green), Lean and Rind 2008 (LR08, purple), Huber and Knutti 2011 (HK11, light blue), Gillett et al. 2012 (G12, orange), Wigley and Santer 2012 (WS12, dark green), and Jones et al. 2013 (J13, pink). Click to enlarge.
Last Thursday, the US Senate committee on environment & public works held a four-hour hearing to review President Obama's Climate Action Plan.

Andrew Dessler, a climate scientist from Texas A&M University, pointed out that our actions today will determine whether we proceed on a dangerous path of continued rapid climate change over the second half of the 21st century, or stabilize global temperatures and minimize the threat posed by climate change.  Dessler concluded:
"The scientific community has been working on understanding the climate system for nearly 200 years.  In that time, a robust understanding of it has emerged.  We know the climate is warming.  We know that humans are now in the driver's seat of the climate system.  We know that, over the next century, if nothing is done to rein in emissions, temperatures will likely increase enough to profoundly change the planet.  I wish this weren't true, but it is what the science tells us."
Climate Scientist to US Senate: 'Climate Change Is a Clear and Present Danger'

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