Ocean Cooling to Halt Global Warming, Researchers Say

[Driven1]

By Jim Efstathiou Jr.

April 30 (Bloomberg) -- Parts of North America and Europe may cool naturally over the next decade, as shifting ocean currents, Germany's Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences said.

Average temperatures in areas such as California and France may drop over the next 10 years, influenced by colder flows in the North Atlantic, said a report today by the institution based in Kiel, Germany. Temperatures worldwide may stabilize in the period.

The study was based on sea-surface temperatures of currents that move heat around the world, and vary from decade to decade. This regional cooling effect may temporarily neutralize the long- term warming phenomenon caused by heat-trapping greenhouse gases building up around the earth, said Richard Wood, a research scientist at the Met Office Hadley Centre, a U.K. provider of environmental and weather-related services.

``Those natural climate variations could be stronger than the global-warming trend over the next 10-year period,'' Wood said in an interview. ``Without knowing that, you might erroneously think there's no global warming going on.''

The Leibniz study, co-written by Noel Keenlyside, a research scientist at the institute, will be published in the May 1 issue of the journal Nature.

``If we don't experience warming over the next 10 years, it doesn't mean that greenhouse-gas warming is not with us,'' Keenlyside said in an interview. ``There can be natural fluctuations that may mask climate change in the short term.''

CO2 Surge

Carbon dioxide, produced mainly from burning fossil fuels such as oil and natural gas, is the chief pollutant blamed for global warming. Since 1988, CO2 levels in the world's skies have increased by 9.8 percent, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Scientists debate how much carbon can be pumped into the atmosphere before the effects of climate change, including droughts, floods and reduced fresh water supplies, become irreversible. For every 1 million molecules in the atmosphere, about 384 are carbon dioxide, according to NOAA.

Global temperatures can't rise by more than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) without risking the worst effects of climate change, according to the European Union. A scenario to stay below that limit suggests that CO2 levels must be stabilized between 350 and to 400 parts per million.

Long-term climate changes in the North Atlantic region affect ``hurricane activity in the Atlantic, and surface temperature and rainfall variations over North America, Europe and northern Africa,'' according to the study.

`Cold Direction'

``Natural variations over the next 10 years might be heading in the cold direction,'' Wood said. ``If you run the model long enough, eventually global warming will win.''

[Beloki]

I went to the beach this past weekend, now I know why the ocean was colder than in my imagination.....

[Jason]

Sounds like the "Day After Tomorrow" theory.

[Midway ®]

Umm... River posted this last night under global cooling thread.

But, nonetheless, it more makes the case for global warming anyway.

[Charleston native]

Oh yes, if the globe is warming, then the oceans will cool.... That's it, of course.

Good grief...I don't ever want to hear about how much of a Christian zealot I am; the zealots of the religion of the Goracle far exceed any zeal exhibited by born-again followers of Christ. All the article does is mention the measurements from the institute, then regurgitates the prophecies of some scientists about how our man-made global warming will kill us all.

Here's an interesting quote from the article:

"Natural variations over the next 10 years might be heading in the cold direction,'' Wood said. "If you run the model long enough, eventually global warming will win.''

Now that's funny. We'll just base our entire premise on computer models.

[Midway ®]

And Jason, this is what happens when I leave you guys alone? You should be ashamed of yourselves. Wait till your father comes home.

[Jason]

Mythbusters did a great experiment on the temperature of controlled environments wixed with different gasses.  They had 4 clear boxes with room air.  In one of the boxes they added a specific amount of CO2, the next was nitrogen, next was helium I think, and the fourth was the control (just room air).  They then put each of them under heat lamps and monitored the temps.  They found that the boxes with the CO2 and nitrogen were both about a full degree hotter inside than the other two.  I guess it goes to show that so called greenhouse gasses can cause a rise in temperature (at least in the controlled environments).

[RiversideGator]

How much CO2 was added and what percentage of the total was it?

[Jason]

I'm not sure of the concentrations.  I can't find any infor on the episode on their website either.

[Charleston native]

Neither statement is supported by the article.  If you are going the contribute criticism, at least be accurate.

Well, I paraphrased what was given in the article, and it is accurate. Blame it on my poor attempt at being sarcastic, I guess. The contradictions in it are blatant.

You're right Stephen, many churches have the golden calves in their church, figuratively and literally. Worship of the earth could be considered one as well...but I'll save the theology debate for later. 

[Driven1]

And Im a Christian Zealot as well, Dave.

ROFL!!