Introduction

My opinion about the Climate Research Unit e-mail/file hack controversy

Climate change has been extensively researched and the overwhelming majority of climate scientists agree that the observed modern day global warming is unprecedented and is very likely caused by humans. Although there is strong consensus among climate experts, many in the general public still think that these scientists are unsure about climate change and the role that humans have played in modern day global warming. The real science is primarily represented in peer-reviewed science journals but there are some good sources listed in Suggested Reading. Science journals are typically not accessible to the general public and are also highly mathematical. Global warming misinformation is primarily published on Web pages, blogs, television shows, radio, and other forms of mass media, all of which are much more accessible to the general public than scientific journals. The result is that the misinformation is reaching more people than the real science. This Website tries to bridge the knowledge gap by summarizing some of the key research that has led scientists to their overwhelming consensus while also addressing some of the unfounded claims by climate change denialists.

Next: The Scientific Consensus

• The Scientific Consensus - Scientific polls, IPCC (2007) conclusions, Synthesis Report from Copenhagen, and scientific organization position statements
• Determining the Climate Record - Climate data determined from ice cores, ocean sediments, corals and trees, oxygen isotope ratios, boreholes, and temperature reconstructions
• Impact of Greenhouse Gases - Role of greenhouse gases in climate change, long and short-term carbon dioxide and methane concentration records, measuring the GH effect, climate feedbacks and sensitivity, and stratospheric cooling
• Climate Change: The Smoking Guns for Humans - ¹³C/¹²C and ¹⁴C/¹²C ratios, carbon emission rates, carbon sources and sinks, models, and stratospheric cooling all point toward human activities
• Natural Causes of Climate Change - Plate tectonics, Milankovic cycles, PDO, solar irradiance (sun spots), El Niños, and volcanoes
• Global Cooling? - Despite misleading claims, climate has not been cooling
• Climate Models & Accuracy - Why climate models are very good at predicting past, present, and future climate, download running climate model screen saver
• Modern Day Climate Change - Temperatures in the modern record, sea-level rise, ocean heat content, Arctic warming, glacier mass/extent, hurricane frequency, and cutting emissions
• The Global Warming Denial Machine - Oil funded organizations and people who have orchestrated doubt, Leipzig Declaration on Global Climate Change, Oregon Petition, Non-Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (NIPCC), The Great Global Warming Swindle, The Skeptic's Handbook, and the massive conspiracy argument
• Global Warming Misinformation - A correction of the most popular incorrect and misleading notions related to global warming
• Reasons for the Misinformation - Three major reasons why there is so much misinformation
• Summary of Key Points - A summary of the key points made in the collection of Web pages at this site
• Suggested Reading - Web documents, blogs, books, videos, and presentations that are invaluable sources of information about climate change
• Works Cited

Last updated: 12/10/09