Tyger
Paranormal Adept
Science deals with hypotheses that become theories. Hypotheses are educated guesses - theories are supported by a great deal of evidence and facts. Climate Change/Global Warming was a strong educated guess (hypothesis) starting as far back as the 1800's. In the 20th century there was accumulating enough data and evidence for the hypothesis to graduate to an accepted theory.
Any theory is never static - but changes and adapts as new data comes in - and that has been the case with the theory of Climate Change and Global Warming. An elegant example of how a theory adapts is the Theory of Uniformitarianism - the theory that changes in the earth's crust during geological history have resulted from the action of continuous and uniform processes. That theory finally adapted (about the 1970's, 80's) to accept catastrophic events as being part of the geologic history of the earth.
The test of any theory is how well it predicts events. Under that constraint, Climate Change Science has a track record regarding predicting what we will experience under a warming climate, correlated with greenhouse gasses increases, etc.
Oklahoma hits 100° in the dead of winter, because climate change is real
This is what climate change looks like.
LINK: Oklahoma hits 100° in the dead of winter, because climate change is real
Any theory is never static - but changes and adapts as new data comes in - and that has been the case with the theory of Climate Change and Global Warming. An elegant example of how a theory adapts is the Theory of Uniformitarianism - the theory that changes in the earth's crust during geological history have resulted from the action of continuous and uniform processes. That theory finally adapted (about the 1970's, 80's) to accept catastrophic events as being part of the geologic history of the earth.
The test of any theory is how well it predicts events. Under that constraint, Climate Change Science has a track record regarding predicting what we will experience under a warming climate, correlated with greenhouse gasses increases, etc.
Oklahoma hits 100° in the dead of winter, because climate change is real
This is what climate change looks like.
LINK: Oklahoma hits 100° in the dead of winter, because climate change is real
TEXT: Two years ago this month, in a well-publicized and much lampooned political stunt, Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) brought a snowball to the Senate floor to highlight the “unseasonable” cold and cast doubt on climate change.
The Republican lawmaker would have been hard-pressed to find a snowball anywhere in his home state this past weekend.
Oklahoma just endured a spell of exceptionally hot weather. Mangum, Oklahoma saw temperatures close to 100º F, setting a state record. The average February high in Mangum is 56º F.
Oklahoma on February 11th, 2017. CREDIT: Mesonet
It is extremely unusual to see such sweltering temperatures in the dead of winter, but climate change is loading the dice for record-breaking heat. Here, the human fingerprint is clear. Carbon pollution traps heat, warming the planet. This, in turn, shifts the entire distribution of temperatures.
Global warming makes extreme heat more likely. CREDIT: Environmental Protection Agency
Cold days become more rare, while warm days become routine. The hottest days — the ones that break records — are almost invariably linked to human influence. In this new climate system, extreme heat is far more likely than extreme cold. Over the last year, the United States has seen more than four times as many record high temperatures as record lows. The heat in Oklahoma is just the latest example.
CREDIT: Climate Signals
Many people may welcome a temperate day in February, but warm weather in normally cold months disrupts ecosystems. Trees may bloom after an unseasonably balmy spell — and then suffer frost damage when cold weather returns. Flowers may blossom and shed their petals before bees arrive to pollinate them. These minor destabilizations have a ripple effect, impacting flora, fauna, and the industries built around them.
In Oklahoma, the spike in temperature is particularly ironic, given the state’s political climate. Inhofe is Washington’s most vocal climate denier, having published a book alleging that climate change is a hoax while serving as the ranking Republican member of the Senate Environment Committee.
Inhofe will soon have an ally inside the EPA — Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, President Trump’s pick to head the agency. Inhofe has describedPruitt, a longtime fossil fuel insider, as a “leader and a partner on environmental issues for many years.” Pruitt is expected to bring several former Inhofe staffers with him to his new office.
As Oklahoma’s attorney general, Pruitt has sued the EPA many times, including over the Obama administration’s plan to limit carbon pollution from power plants. The Clean Power Plan is considered one of the most effective tools for curbing U.S. carbon emissions.
Caveat: There will be a temptation (among some) to post spurious rebuttals. Such rebuttals are irrelevant, a distraction, and not informative. What is interesting is how the scientists themselves who are doing the research and collecting the data are adapting the theory (if at all) to reflect new data, etc. In most cases they are being caught off-guard with how fast the scenarios - once predicted to take a century or at least decades - are playing out in years.The Republican lawmaker would have been hard-pressed to find a snowball anywhere in his home state this past weekend.
Oklahoma just endured a spell of exceptionally hot weather. Mangum, Oklahoma saw temperatures close to 100º F, setting a state record. The average February high in Mangum is 56º F.
Oklahoma on February 11th, 2017. CREDIT: Mesonet
It is extremely unusual to see such sweltering temperatures in the dead of winter, but climate change is loading the dice for record-breaking heat. Here, the human fingerprint is clear. Carbon pollution traps heat, warming the planet. This, in turn, shifts the entire distribution of temperatures.
Global warming makes extreme heat more likely. CREDIT: Environmental Protection Agency
Cold days become more rare, while warm days become routine. The hottest days — the ones that break records — are almost invariably linked to human influence. In this new climate system, extreme heat is far more likely than extreme cold. Over the last year, the United States has seen more than four times as many record high temperatures as record lows. The heat in Oklahoma is just the latest example.
CREDIT: Climate Signals
Many people may welcome a temperate day in February, but warm weather in normally cold months disrupts ecosystems. Trees may bloom after an unseasonably balmy spell — and then suffer frost damage when cold weather returns. Flowers may blossom and shed their petals before bees arrive to pollinate them. These minor destabilizations have a ripple effect, impacting flora, fauna, and the industries built around them.
In Oklahoma, the spike in temperature is particularly ironic, given the state’s political climate. Inhofe is Washington’s most vocal climate denier, having published a book alleging that climate change is a hoax while serving as the ranking Republican member of the Senate Environment Committee.
Inhofe will soon have an ally inside the EPA — Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt, President Trump’s pick to head the agency. Inhofe has describedPruitt, a longtime fossil fuel insider, as a “leader and a partner on environmental issues for many years.” Pruitt is expected to bring several former Inhofe staffers with him to his new office.
As Oklahoma’s attorney general, Pruitt has sued the EPA many times, including over the Obama administration’s plan to limit carbon pollution from power plants. The Clean Power Plan is considered one of the most effective tools for curbing U.S. carbon emissions.
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