Climate Part 2
The following excerpt dragged me hook, line and sinker into climate research. Is the author a Worrier, Prepper or Grubber? Hard to know. “Saturday’s carbon dioxide measurement of 415 parts per million at Hawaii’s Mauna Loa Observatory is the highest in at least 800,000 years and probably over 3 million years. Carbon dioxide levels have risen by nearly 50 percent since the Industrial Revolution.”[1]
Whoa. Pull the handbrake. The highest in 800,000 years? Inquiring minds want to know, what jacked up the CO2 800,000 years ago? Clearly it was not fossil fuel emissions being belched into the atmosphere. And what brought it down? Certainly not the Green New Deal. What were the temps then vs now?
What does all of this mean? Well the first thing it means is I know nothing about climate science and have no intention of going back to school. So how do we the people make sense of it? Let’s start with some oversimplified basics followed by the claims being bandied about by the competing factions. Will it be obvious which claims are real, which are guesses and which are designed to influence? Maybe. One thing I can guarantee, the upcoming blogs will create a desire to drink heavily.
Before we get started, let’s talk about me. I am sad that I have been yanked out of Sandhead status. But because the claims of the Preppers are so dire, there is no choice but to give global warming serious consideration. Now that I am engaged, my natural personality puts me squarely in the Debater category. I am skeptical of Preppers with claims of earthly doom in 12 years and have only disdain for Grubbers. Everyone else I am good with. This will shine through but unlike the news media, my primary goal is to inform, not influence. Therefore, the positions of all sides will be presented fairly, and I will be clear when offering opinions or jokes or sarcasm or satire.
The earth’s climate is driven primarily by solar energy. It reminds me of a basic dieting principle – calories in, calories out. It is a similar concept with the earth – energy in, energy out and as with our bodies, balance or the lack thereof plays a role. The earth’s energy cycle begins with solar energy entering our atmosphere which is absorbed or reflected. The energy that is absorbed gets busy doing all sorts of things that drive climate and weather. Then the energy radiates back to outer space in the form of infrared radiation (IR). If incoming and outgoing energy are in balance, the earth’s temperature remains constant.[2]
The photo below is from “The Mythology of Global Warming” by Dr. Bruce Bunker and is a simplified version of the earth’s energy cycle which the author adapted from Primer on Solar Energy, Solar Energy Systems, Argonne National Laboratory. Note the title clearly indicates the book was written by a Debater, but because the energy cycle is not a controversial topic and the author did an excellent job of simplifying the energy cycle, I chose to use only this figure and not present another from a Prepper. Mr. Bunker’s far more detailed (and accurate) explanation of the energy cycle is worth the read.
Why is the energy cycle important to understand? Because it leads to the understanding of the basic premise of global warming…
[1]https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/it-was-84-degrees-near-the-arctic-ocean-this-weekend-as-carbon-dioxide-hit-its-highest-level-in-human-history/ar-AABlBAQ
I want to know who was monitoring CO2 levels 800,000 years ago? Ancient Astronauts?
Maybe the volcano burped.
That is a very good question! From what I understand they estimate CO2 levels from ice cores but I am getting into that and will definitely be addressing. You are also correct about volcanos plus other natural occurrences that impact CO2 levels
That’s it? Talk about leaving me wanting more. It was just getting good. I couldn’t wait to read what came after the graphic….
Haha! Am researching as we speak. More is definitely to come!