Global Warming
All these changes, whether we recognize it or not, are connected to us. Anything that happens to the ocean will affect our lives. Between half and three-quarters of the world's population live within 60 km of the sea which will be driven inland by rising sea levels. All major cities will be filled up with unimaginable congestion; food and water supplies will dwindle, good relations will break down; housing will be unavailable; homelessness and poverty will become overwhelming. And this could happen in 20 years or less. And we will feel the impact in other ways as well.
As sea life dwindles in the oceans, it will mean fewer and fewer jobs for anyone dependent on resources from the sea. As major parts of world economies break down, the last remaining marine species preserved by humankind in aquairums will come to haunt us, as rare wild species in zoos already do. Already today, hundreds of years of overfishing have resulted in an empty ocean through which immense populations of wildlife once swam. There is now less of everything, and more of nothing.
Global warming will make memories out of many living things, and as we remember the bounty of life that this planet used to support, we will feel shame and a deep sense of loss, unless we do everything we can to slow climate change, protect what is left, and restore at least part of what we have lost.
However, little of this has to come to pass, yet. We can protect the future by realizing that no one is born a conservationist. A conservationist is shaped and inspired by world events: these events, changes happening to our world. Human beings have always been at their best when things are at their worst. We can no longer wait for the worst to come before we reveal what is best within us. Now is the time to step up.
Scientists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution have been studying climate change for decades. Considerable information about the oceans and climate change is available at: http://www.whoi.edu/institutes/occi/. The Institution held a panel discussion to address questions about climate change. The discussion was introduced by Terry Joyce, director of the Ocean and Climate Change Institute and a senior scientist in physical oceanography, and moderated by Tom Wheeler, chairman of the corporation. To learn more about the panel discussion go to http://www.whoi.edu/institutes/occi/viewArticle.do?id=13366
Ocean acidification due to increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide - 30 Jun 2005 - The Royal Society
If you haven't watched An Inconvenient Truth yet, we highly recommend it.
Global Warming And Hurricanes: Only Heat, Or Is There Light?
Center for Investigative Reporting | PBS Fronline
Climate Change Impacts on the United States
The Potential Consequences of Climate Variability and Change
Boiling Point: How Politicians, Big Oil and Coal, Journalists and Activists Are Fueling the Climate Crisis—And What We Can Do to Avert Disaster
Everyone should read this book if you're interested in the future of civilization.
A few random quotes from Gelspan's book:
"Many activists today are promoting the use of energy-efficient light bulbs, carpooling, and other climate-conscious lifestyle changes. Unfortunately, these strategies, even under the most wildly optimistic scenarios, fall far short of nature's requirement that we cut our consumption of coal and oil by 70 percent."
"Our climate is capable of immense and wildly disruptive surprises. Every day, those surprises seem progressively more likely than not. Not only are we gambling with our future, we are gambling with our eyes blindfolded. We can't even see the cards we've been dealt."
"Although the disappearance of the glaciers is visually striking, its importance may be overshadowed by a less visible but more pervasive consequence of atmospheric warming. All over the world, species are traveling toward the poles in an effort to maintain temperature stability."
"There is only one chance in 100 that the rate of warming will be less than double the warming rate of the last 100 years—and a 99% probability that it will exceed double the past warming rate.... The most likely estimate of warming between [now] and 2100 is 5.5°F. This is five times the warming rate experienced over the past 100 years. At the high end, there is a five percent chance that the warming could be more than eight times the warming rate of the past century."
"In this immense drama of uncertain outcome, this much is true: A major discontinuity is inevitable. The collective life we have lived as a species for thousands of years will not continue long into the future. We will either see the fabric of civilization unravel under the onslaught of an increasingly unstable climate—or else we will use the construction of a new global energy infrastructure to begin to forge a new set of global relationships.
If we are truly lucky—and visionary enough—those new relationships will differ dramatically from what we have known throughout our recorded history. They will be based far less on what divides us as a species and far more on what unites us. Embedded in the gathering fury of nature is a hidden gift—an opportunity to begin to redeem an increasingly fragmented world. The alternative is a certain and rapid decent into climate hell." Get the book (~$5 used) here: Boiling Point | Discuss the book in the Plankton Forums
See 100 Things We Can All Do to protect our environment, hopefully slow global warming and conserve our ocean.
References
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Global Warming News
Impacts of changing climate on ocean biology
A three-year field program now underway is measuring carbon distributions and primary productivity in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean to help scientists worldwide determine the impacts of a changing climate on ocean biology and biogeochemistry.
Aquatic 'dead zones' contributing to climate change
The increased frequency and intensity of oxygen-deprived "dead zones" along the world's coasts can negatively impact environmental conditions in far more than local waters. Scientists explain that the increased amount of nitrous oxide produced in hypoxic waters can elevate concentrations in the atmosphere, further exacerbating the impacts of global warming and contributing to ozone "holes" that increase our exposure to harmful UV radiation.
Predicting future climate: Networking initiative to support interdisciplinary research
Specialists from various Earth system science disciplines recently gathered to address a major question: what will our environment look like in the future? Of course, possible answers to this question raise even more questions. For instance, if changing climatic conditions were to alter local vegetation, how would this new landscape react to future climatic trends? Answering these questions with certainty would allow us to manage better our natural resources by defining appropriate planning and mitigation actions.
More maize ethanol may boost greenhouse gas emissions
Mandated increases in the production of maize-derived ethanol will lead to land-use changes that boost carbon dioxide emissions enough to make the fuel a worse environmental option than burning gasoline, according to a new analysis.
Ever-changing Earth: How the atmosphere can affect planet's shape, rotation, gravitational field
Researchers in Austria are investigating the effects of the Earth's atmosphere on our planet's shape, its rotation and its gravitational field. The researchers' aim is to develop a better understanding of the Earth's system and to support the development of the Global Geodetic Observing System (GGOS).
Learning from nature: Scientists break down carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide using visible light
A recent discovery in understanding how to chemically break down the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide into a useful form opens the doors for scientists to wonder what organism is out there -- or could be created -- to accomplish the task. Scientists have figured out a way to efficiently turn carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide using visible light, like sunlight.
Prehistoric response to global warming informs human planning today
Since 2004, University at Buffalo anthropologist Ezra Zubrow has worked intensively with teams of scientists in the Arctic regions of St. James Bay, Quebec, northern Finland and Kamchatka to understand how humans living 4,000 to 6,000 years ago reacted to climate changes.
Increased solar radiation requires additional CO2 reduction of 50 million tonnes, analysis finds
The recently observed reduction in air pollution implies that more solar radiation reaches Earth’s surface. This could lead to a far more rapid increase in Earth’s temperature in the coming decades than has previously been expected. In order to successfully combat global warming, it is crucial that scientists incorporate increases in CO2 emissions reductions as well as reductions in air pollution in the calculations, according to a new analysis based on unique solar radiation data collected from weather stations between 1959 and 2002.
Carbon emissions 'outsourced' to developing countries
Scientists report that over a third of carbon dioxide emissions associated with consumption of goods and services in many developed countries are actually emitted outside their borders. The study finds that, per person, about 2.5 tons of carbon dioxide are consumed in the US but produced somewhere else. For Europeans, the figure can exceed four tons per person. Most of these emissions are outsourced to developing countries, especially China.
Climate fluctuations 115,000 years ago: Were short warm periods typical for transitions to glacial epochs?
At the end of the last interglacial epoch, around 115,000 years ago, there were significant climate fluctuations. In Central and Eastern Europe, the slow transition from the Eemian Interglacial to the Weichselian Glacial was marked by a growing instability in vegetation trends with possibly at least two warming events. This is the finding of German and Russian climate researchers who have evaluated geochemical and pollen analyses of lake sediments in Saxony-Anhalt, Brandenburg and Russia.
Snowball Earth: New evidence hints at global glaciation 716.5 million years ago
Geologists have found evidence that sea ice extended to the equator 716.5 million years ago, bringing new precision to a "snowball Earth" event long suspected to have taken place around that time. The new findings -- based on an analysis of ancient tropical rocks that are now found in remote northwestern Canada -- bolster the theory that our planet has, at times in the past, been ice-covered at all latitudes.
Methane releases from Arctic shelf may be much larger and faster than anticipated
A section of the Arctic Ocean seafloor that holds vast stores of frozen methane is showing signs of instability and widespread venting of the powerful greenhouse gas, according to new research.
Warming coastal water, thinning marine populations: Tracking of 2010 El Niño reveals marine life reductions
The ongoing El Niño of 2010 is affecting north Pacific Ocean ecosystems in ways that could affect the West Coast fishing industry, according to scientists. Researchers report a stronger than normal northward movement of warm water up the Southern California coast, a high sea-level event in January and low abundances of plankton and pelagic fish -- all conditions consistent with El Niño.
Mass loss from Alaskan glaciers overestimated? Previous melt contributed a third less to sea-level rise than estimated
The melting of glaciers is well documented, but when looking at the rate at which they have been retreating, a team of international researchers steps back and says not so fast. Previous studies have largely overestimated mass loss from Alaskan glaciers over the past 40-plus years, according to a new study that recalculates glacier melt in Alaska.
Chemicals that eased one environmental problem may worsen another
Chemicals that helped solve a global environmental crisis in the 1990s -- the hole in Earth's protective ozone layer -- may be making another problem -- acid rain -- worse, scientists are reporting. A new study analyzes the effect of chemicals that replaced the ozone-destroying chlorofluorocarbons once used in aerosol spray cans, air conditioners, refrigerators, and other products.
El Niño and a pathogen, not global warming, killed Costa Rican toad
Scientists broadly agree that global warming may threaten the survival of many plant and animal species; but global warming did not kill the Monteverde golden toad, an often cited example of climate-triggered extinction, says a new study.
Antifreeze proteins can stop ice melt, new study finds
The same antifreeze proteins that keep organisms from freezing in cold environments also can prevent ice from melting at warmer temperatures, according to a new study.
Ancient corals hold new hope for reefs
Fossil corals, up to half a million years old, are providing fresh hope that coral reefs may be able to withstand the huge stresses imposed on them by today's human activity. Reef ecosystems were able to persist through massive environmental changes imposed by sharply falling sea levels during previous ice ages, an international scientific team has found. This provides new hope for their capacity to endure the increasing human impacts forecast for the 21st century.
Understanding global climate change through new breakthroughs in polar research
Scientists have investigated the distribution and abundance of Antarctica's vast marine biodiversity with the Census of Antarctic Marine Life.
Ancient DNA from rare fossil reveals that polar bears evolved recently and adapted quickly
DNA from a rare, ancient polar bear fossil is yielding information about the response of the species to the devastation wrought by past climate changes. Analyses of the fossil's DNA reveals key pieces of the evolutionary history of both polar bears and brown bears. The fossil's DNA is, by far, the oldest mammal mitochondrial genome to be sequenced -- about twice the age of the oldest genome sequence from a woolly mammoth.
