The main reason for this is that we are coming out of "The Little Ice Age" - LIA (It definitely ended for sure in the mid-1800s. Some may argue it ended in the 1700s, but it was definitely an "Ice Age").
Temperatures have been flat for some time now. If you want to use the "Super El Nino Period of 1997-1998" as a starting point, then temperatures are falling. At that time there was an event that caused the whole temperature of the Planet to increase by 1C in just over 1 year and it was found to be mostly natural.
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Update: If you'd like to use Dr. Roy Spencer's satellite temperature records, then you'll find that we are only 0.17C above the 1980-2010 average. http://www.drroyspencer.com/latest-globa...
Actually, I've read that the ocean hasn't been warming either for this time.
Anyhow, we on the right have known that none can truly say that we're causing global warming to happen because the vast majority of CO2, the primary agent supposedly is absorbed by 3/4 of the earth's surface into the oceans and other bodies of water. It can't exactly block heat from dissipating into space when it's being forced down below.
However, the ocean's heat is thought to have some influence on overall global temperatures, but so is the sun.
We on the right tend to believe that the sun is more so having the effects on global warming and cooling simply because whenever anything changes in the sun, global temperatures on earth also change. It seems that global temperature and the current activities on the sun have a direct correlation, and real global warming research should be teaming up with space exploration scientists in order to find a way of more efficiently studying the sun's direct effect on global temperatures.
Imagine the day that we can predict global warming and cooling trends because we can read the forecast of the sun. Now that would be a truly amazing accomplishment. Imagine we could do that. We might be able to use that understanding to also predict when, where, and at what approximate periods of time certain planets would be inhabitable.
But no, right now there's a lot of power and wealth tied up into humans being the cause of global warming.
I'll tell you, nothing has been a greater hindrance to science and understanding than greed for power and wealth. Indeed, it wasn't until greed for power and wealth became a reason for science that we were even able to discover that the earth was actually round.
It depends upon how you choose to define it. Over the past decade or so, warming of the toposphere has been flat, the oceans have increased warming, and melting of the Arctic ice cap has been much faster than expected. Resulting changes in climate have been faster and greater than expected six years ago even though the troposphere as warmed less. The changes to the jet stream and resulting changes in weather in North America and Northern Europe was not foreseen in 2006. The mix of stalled heat waves and blizzards futrher south coming more often is due to the jet stream which has slowed by 14% and is now wavier.
Humans have emitted enough extra greenhouse gas, primarily CO2 and Methane for GW to continue beyond 2100. Ignore the 15 year no warming. That denier BS was based on a lie by someone who forged data and claiming it was based on info released by the MET. Total lie The MET even said it was a lie on their own blog the same day the article was printed.
Look at the sun and see the blank spots.
look at the arctic and notice summer is over.
No global warming for at least 15 years.
