Continuing perhaps the most important topic on the planet, NASA is out with its latest global temperature measurement (through January 2014), and it’s not good news. It’s worth following the link just to see the nifty, but uncopyable, chart. The executive summary? We set another record as the global temperature continues to climb.
NOAA chimes in with more bad news:
Global carbon dioxide concentrations surpass 400 parts per million for the first month since measurements began
…
“This marks the fact that humans burning fossil fuels have caused global carbon dioxide concentrations to rise more than 120 parts per million since pre-industrial times,” added Tans. “Half of that rise has occurred since 1980.”The International Energy Agency reported on March 13 that the growth of global emissions from fossil fuel burning stalled in 2014, remaining at the same levels as 2013. Stabilizing the rate of emissions is not enough to avert climate change, however. NOAA data show that the average growth rate of carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere from 2012 to 2014 was 2.25 ppm per year, the highest ever recorded over three consecutive years.
Skeptical Science (an anti-climate change skeptic site) explains how CO2 measurements are pursued and what they show (July 2011):
The following graph shows atmospheric CO2 levels over the last 10,000 years. It includes ice core data for CO2 levels before 1950. For values after 1950, direct measurements from Mauna Loa, Hawaii were used.
Figure 1: CO2 levels (parts per million) over the past 10,000 years. Blue line from Taylor Dome ice cores (NOAA). Green line from Law Dome ice core (CDIAC). Red line from direct measurements at Mauna Loa, Hawaii (NOAA).Mauna Loa is often used as an example of rising carbon dioxide levels because its the longest, continuous series of directly measured atmospheric CO2. The reason why it’s acceptable to use Mauna Loa as a proxy for global CO2 levels is because CO2 mixes well throughout the atmosphere. Consequently, the trend in Mauna Loa CO2 (1.64 ppm per year) is statistically indistinguishable from the trend in global CO2 levels (1.66 ppm per year). If global CO2 was used in Figure 1 above, the result “hockey stick” shape would be identical.
Judith Curry may be a good source for ongoing coverage of climate change technical details.
And in the communications department, Treehugger blogger Margaret Badore runs down the story on a professor and a student who take the data … and make music out of it. It’s quite moving, and worth your time.
(h/t CNN)
