FROM-Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
Martian-made global warming?
My adventures have taken me to some pretty interesting places, but it seems none are as interesting as our own hometown. Whether I'm in a jungle, on a mountain or in a pub, somebody always wants to talk about Harleys or Miller when they hear I'm from Milwaukee. Now, I can add another topic to that: global warming.
Two professors from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Kyle Swanson and Anastasios Tsonis, recently set the global warming world ablaze when they studied cold, hard numbers and found that the Earth stopped heating up in 2001 and actually has been cooling a bit.
Much to their dismay, "experts" on one side used the research to say, "See, we told you there's no warming," and those on the other side spun what the team discovered to make it sound less conclusive.
The professors have tried to stay above the fray by saying that the research is what it is and that it shouldn't be used to further agendas on either side, but that has not stopped the battles. The professors should have called NASA. It happened to that agency's researchers, too.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration researchers studied all the weather data going back to 1903, the first year that reliable long-term records started being kept. They, too, found that the Earth had warmed up a bit, but according to its climatologist, Ray Spencer, temperatures have been falling for the past five years.
But being good scientists, the NASA researchers decided to compare that to the only other planet that we have reliable, long-term data for: Mars. They found that temperatures there are 0.5 degrees Celsius warmer now than they were in 1973. But, unlike Earth, the Red Planet is still heating up. That has caused some problems.
If global warming is man-made, where are the thousands of factories and massive traffic jams that would be needed to heat up Mars? On the other hand, if this is just a natural planetary cycle, could that mean Earth is having one as well? But if that's true, why is Mars still heating up and Earth is not?
The activity at the polar ice caps are a perfect example. Spencer says on Earth, the arctic ice has grown more on a percentage basis this winter than at any time since 1979. However on Mars, according to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the South Pole has shrunk three years in a row, in such a way that it indicates a climate change. Again, why?
Just like in Swanson's and Tsonis' case, one side says, "Well, that proves it's natural." The other says, "Mars isn't Earth, so it doesn't count." Agendas once again over science.
Does this new data mean we should stop conserving, recycling and looking for alternative energy sources? No. These are common-sense measures that make us good stewards of our home planet. But it does mean we should look for real solutions and stop claiming it's totally humanity's fault. Otherwise, it's only fair to say: "Global warming? I blame the Martians!"
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Martian-made global warming?
My adventures have taken me to some pretty interesting places, but it seems none are as interesting as our own hometown. Whether I'm in a jungle, on a mountain or in a pub, somebody always wants to talk about Harleys or Miller when they hear I'm from Milwaukee. Now, I can add another topic to that: global warming.
Two professors from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Kyle Swanson and Anastasios Tsonis, recently set the global warming world ablaze when they studied cold, hard numbers and found that the Earth stopped heating up in 2001 and actually has been cooling a bit.
Much to their dismay, "experts" on one side used the research to say, "See, we told you there's no warming," and those on the other side spun what the team discovered to make it sound less conclusive.
The professors have tried to stay above the fray by saying that the research is what it is and that it shouldn't be used to further agendas on either side, but that has not stopped the battles. The professors should have called NASA. It happened to that agency's researchers, too.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration researchers studied all the weather data going back to 1903, the first year that reliable long-term records started being kept. They, too, found that the Earth had warmed up a bit, but according to its climatologist, Ray Spencer, temperatures have been falling for the past five years.
But being good scientists, the NASA researchers decided to compare that to the only other planet that we have reliable, long-term data for: Mars. They found that temperatures there are 0.5 degrees Celsius warmer now than they were in 1973. But, unlike Earth, the Red Planet is still heating up. That has caused some problems.
If global warming is man-made, where are the thousands of factories and massive traffic jams that would be needed to heat up Mars? On the other hand, if this is just a natural planetary cycle, could that mean Earth is having one as well? But if that's true, why is Mars still heating up and Earth is not?
The activity at the polar ice caps are a perfect example. Spencer says on Earth, the arctic ice has grown more on a percentage basis this winter than at any time since 1979. However on Mars, according to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the South Pole has shrunk three years in a row, in such a way that it indicates a climate change. Again, why?
Just like in Swanson's and Tsonis' case, one side says, "Well, that proves it's natural." The other says, "Mars isn't Earth, so it doesn't count." Agendas once again over science.
Does this new data mean we should stop conserving, recycling and looking for alternative energy sources? No. These are common-sense measures that make us good stewards of our home planet. But it does mean we should look for real solutions and stop claiming it's totally humanity's fault. Otherwise, it's only fair to say: "Global warming? I blame the Martians!"
More...
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