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Le Québécois Libre, June 15, 2012, No 301 Link: http://www.quebecoislibre.org/12/120615-5.html Toward the end of May, an alarm was sounded that carbon dioxide levels has reached 400-parts per million (about 0.04% of the atmosphere). For several years, elected officials accepted the carbon dioxide theory of global warming and provided funding to numerous environmental groups to take action to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from numerous sources. The theory originated in the research of the climate laboratory at East Anglia University in the UK, under the direction of Dr Phil Jones. However, peers who scrutinized the carbon dioxide theory of global warming pointed out some flaws in the research. Dr Jones subsequently recanted the carbon dioxide theory of global warming, pointing to errors made by his subordinates and assistants. Nevertheless, there has been much evidence to suggest that the Earth recently underwent a period of global warming. Researchers such as Piers Corbyn have suggested the solar cycle theory of global warming, whereby thermal energy from the sun fluctuates in long cyclical waves, with a wavelength that is measured in decades. Wind, Water and Warming A climate researcher from Seattle compared the climates of cities located close to the 50th parallel, cities that include Vancouver, Regina and Winnipeg plus overseas locations such as London, Paris, Frankfurt and Kiev. While mid-winter temperatures in Vancouver, London and Paris are comparatively mild near the freezing point of water, mid-winter temperatures can drop to –40ºC in Regina, Winnipeg and Kiev. Vancouver, London and Paris are located near warm oceanic coasts where prevailing winds blow from the ocean toward land. The winds pick up heat from the seawater and carry that heat inland. Water also has a very high heat capacity, that is, a cubic unit of water holds some 3,300 times the amount of heat as the identical cubic unit of air. During the summer, the North Atlantic and North Pacific absorb massive amounts of solar thermal energy, much of which remains in the water through most of the winter. Also during the summer, the North Atlantic drift carries warmer water into the Norwegian Sea and into the Barents Sea. During a cyclical period of increased solar energy, the North Atlantic drift will move slightly warmer water under the Arctic ice, where the insulating effect of the ice cover will reduce heat loss. The slow buildup of heat along with the immense thermal storage capacity of water would eventually cause some melting of the Arctic ice and expose open water. Prevailing winds will then collect much moisture from the open water and carry that moisture over land, into northern Canada, northern Europe and northern Russia. The result may be unusual weather conditions including increased northern precipitation, such as last winter’s record snowfalls across Europe. While such weather patterns may be attributed to global warming, that global warming may also be the result of the earth receiving slightly more thermal energy during a period of increased cyclical solar activity. Changing the temperature of seawater has the potential to reverse the direction of an ocean current, as occurs annually in the northern area of the Indian Ocean. During the summer, the northern region of the Indian Ocean is warm and the ocean current flows in a clockwise direction. During the winter when the seawater is cooler, the same ocean current reverses direction and flows counterclockwise, an occurrence that is regarded as normal. Likewise in the Pacific Ocean, a change in seawater temperature during the warmer phase of the solar long-cycle has the potential to reverse the direction of an ocean current. Such a reversal has occurred and produced the erratic weather patterns associated with the El Nino and La Nina phenomena. Cooler Days Ahead? Climate researchers such as Piers Corbyn suggest that there has been no global warming over the past 2 to 10 years, while a trend toward global cooling may likely occur. Even during a period of approaching global cooling, much solar thermal energy from the preceding period of solar activity remains stored in water under the Arctic. It may likely continue to cause the Arctic ice cover to recede, or reduce the thickness of that ice cover. If a navigable passage opens up across the Arctic, it may only be navigable for a very short period of time, before the buildup of Arctic ice renders the passage impassable once again. While global warming has been blamed for melting the polar ice caps and causing sea levels to rise in low-lying areas, there is an alternate explanation for the appearance of rising sea levels. The recent tsunamis across the Asia-Pacific region and earthquakes in Italy, Turkey and Iran suggest movement of the earth’s tectonic plates. Some plates are rising while other plates are sinking, relative to maritime sea levels (MSL). The alternate solar-cycle theory of global warming suggests that governments may be needlessly misallocating public funding into unproductive programs. Proponents of the carbon dioxide theory of global warming may have succeeded in enticing governments and industries in developed countries to open their wallets to support programs in underdeveloped countries, or other less-than-productive programs. The solar-cycle theory of global warming suggests that the sun may be near the cyclical end of the warmer period and at the beginning of a cooler period. If global cooling becomes evident, will government officials engage in self-congratulatory behaviour for having solved the global warming problem? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Harry Valentine is a free-marketeer living in Eastern Ontario. |