People have been inclined to believe anyone who says climate change is not man made because we would like to go on enjoying the lifestyle that fossil fuels have given us so easily. The alternative way of using the abundant energy of the sun takes more effort. A new detailed study shows that man must take responsibility and in my opinion there is now no excuse if we don’t take the radical action needed to keep global warming from going above 2C. Experts warn that above that level, a runaway effect can kick in. Below 2C we may be reasonably okay.
In The Independent of 11 July 2007 Steve Connor reported the new study:
“Claims that increased solar activity is the cause of global warming – rather than man-made greenhouse gases – have been comprehensively disproved by a detailed study of the Sun.
“Scientists have delivered the final blow to the theory that recent global warming can be explained by variations in the natural cycles of the Sun – a favourite refuge for climate sceptics who dismiss the influence of greenhouse-gas emissions.
“An analysis of the records of all of the Sun’s activities over the past few decades – such as sunspot cycles and magnetic fields – shows that since 1985 solar activity has decreased significantly, while global warming has continued to increase.
“Mike Lockwood, of the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Chilton, Oxfordshire, said: “In 1985, the Sun did a U-turn in every respect. It no longer went in the right direction to contribute to global warming. We think it’s almost completely conclusive proof that the Sun does not account for the recent increases in global warming.
“The study, published today in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society A, shows there is no doubt that solar activity over the past 20 years has run in the opposite direction to global warming, and therefore cannot explain rises in average global temperatures.”
