I’ve searched the internet for global warming… some say it’s not warming (that would be good news for the newspapers) and others say it is warming (again bad news…)
And who should I believe, should I count on the minority or the majority…
( Can I have a whole explanation ) ?
Asker: Steven , 11 years
Answer
Best,
There is no doubt that the average temperature on Earth has risen in the last 100 years because there are measurements of that. Everything indicates that it will continue to rise, even if a colder year may come in between (like now). This also applies to the carbon dioxide content in the atmosphere and the level of the sea level. The polar caps and glaciers are melting, there is no doubt about that.
The problem arises when one tries to make predictions in the longer term, towards the future. Models are used for this, but those models are not necessarily correct. So there can be criticism and controversy about that, which you are referring to.
Also controversial is what is the exact cause of the current warming. CO2 emissions from human activities are a possibility, but increasing solar radiation could also be possible. Scientists don’t quite agree on this either.
Incidentally, this matter is well discussed on Wikipedia (Global Warming).
Answered by
Prof. dr. dr. Luc Bouwens
Biomedical Sciences
Free University of Brussels
Avenue de la Plein 2 1050 Ixelles
http://www.vub.ac.be/
Avenue de la Plein 2 1050 Ixelles
http://www.vub.ac.be/
.