| Greenhouse gases have an exceptionally long lifespan | | | | the entire climate change discussion. |
| in the atmosphere. David Archer, apparently the | | | | One thing "more heat-less ice" means for certain is |
| foremost scientist (a climatologist) addressing this | | | | that our current strategy, which calls for universal |
| issue, explains why the extra CO2 introduced to the | | | | "carbon footprint reduction" cannot and will not |
| atmosphere over the passed 200 years should be | | | | produce any relief - even if we reduced our |
| expected to remain aloft, trapping heat, for at least | | | | worldwide carbon footprint to zero by tomorrow |
| another 1,000 years. He is joined in that assessment | | | | morning. Since the "more heat - less ice - 1,000 |
| by Susan Solomon of NOAA. This fact carries | | | | years" phenomenon is already ongoing it will continue |
| powerful and frightening implications. | | | | no matter what we do, save the mechanical |
| Heat has, generally speaking, been increasing from | | | | scrubbing of the CO2 from the atmosphere and |
| year to year, for the past two decades. During that | | | | sequestering it below ground where it can no longer |
| same two decade period, scientific researchers have | | | | contribute to the greenhouse effect. Avoiding the |
| been steadily reporting a decline in the amount of ice | | | | consequences of climate change merely by changing |
| on earth as the building heat continues to melt the | | | | our future behavior vis-a-vis CO2 is now a fully |
| glaciers and polar caps at a rate faster than the | | | | lapsed option. |
| annual snowfalls can replace. Year after year, more | | | | Another thing "more heat - less ice - 1,000 years" |
| heat - less ice and the rate of melting increasing as it | | | | means is that the scientific community's current |
| goes. What's that going to mean to us? | | | | estimates of how hot it is going to get are largely |
| Since we are now pretty much guaranteed that the | | | | useless, because they have failed to take into |
| "more heat - less ice" trend will continue. The | | | | account the effect that the expectable absence of |
| thousand year lifespan will keep CO2 at its current | | | | heat absorbing ice will have on rising temperatures. |
| levels preventing any decline in the heating trend. | | | | Currently, global heat is dramatically reduced because |
| Each year there is less ice for the increasing heat to | | | | much of it is neutralized by the melting of ice. Once |
| melt so we should probably expect the rate of | | | | the ice is gone, temperatures will be free to rise to |
| melting to increase dramatically in the near term. An | | | | levels we can't even estimate since, in the past, |
| ice free planet will become a reality much sooner | | | | earth has always had ice in abundance. |
| than presently thought. The Arctic is expected to be | | | | When the outcome of an event which happens over |
| free of summer ice within the next 3-5 years. How | | | | time becomes both known and unavoidable, it is said |
| soon for Antarctica and Greenland? Who knows,? So | | | | to have entered into its "end game." Most of us still |
| far, every prediction by the scientific community, as | | | | believe there is plenty of time to head this off when |
| to "how long" before a particular portion of the ice | | | | in fact the door has already closed on the possibility |
| inventory is completely melted, has been woefully | | | | of steering clear of climate change merely by |
| inaccurate. Their early predictions for when the | | | | changing our relationship with oil. Now, we must look |
| Arctic's summer ice would be gone was next century | | | | to technology for our salvation and hope we are |
| - now its down to 3-5 years. "More heat - less ice - | | | | clever enough to "catch up" in this deadly game |
| 1,000 years" may soon become the central focus of | | | | which up to now, we have already lost. |