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Earth is now trapping an ‘unprecedented’ amount of heat, NASA says

cigaretteman

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May 29, 2001
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The amount of heat Earth traps has roughly doubled since 2005, contributing to more rapidly warming oceans, air and land, according to new research from NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

“The magnitude of the increase is unprecedented,” said Norman Loeb, a NASA scientist and lead author of the study, which was published this week in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. “The Earth is warming faster than expected.”
Using satellite data, researchers measured what is known as Earth’s energy imbalance — the difference between how much energy the planet absorbs from the sun, and how much it’s able to shed, or radiate back out into space.

When there is a positive imbalance — Earth absorbing more heat than it is losing — it is a first step toward global warming, said Stuart Evans, a climate scientist at the University at Buffalo. “It’s a sign the Earth is gaining energy.”








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That imbalance roughly doubled between 2005 and 2019, the study found. “It is a massive amount of energy,” said Gregory Johnson, an oceanographer for NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory and co-author of the study. Johnson said the energy increase is equivalent to four detonations per second of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, or every person on Earth using 20 electric tea kettles at once. “It’s such a hard number to get your mind around.”


The Earth takes in about 240 watts per square meter of energy from the sun. At the beginning of the study period, in 2005, it was radiating back out about 239.5 of those watts — creating a positive imbalance of about half a watt. By the end, in 2019, that gap had nearly doubled to about 1 full watt per square meter.

Oceans absorb most of that heat, about 90 percent. When researchers compared satellite data to temperature readings from a system of ocean sensors, they found a similar pattern. The agreement between the data sets surpassed expectations, Loeb said, calling it the “nail in the coffin” for the imbalance results.
“The fact that they used two different observational approaches and came up with the same trends is pretty remarkable,” said Elizabeth Maroon, a climatologist at the University of Wisconsin at Madison unaffiliated with the study. “It lends a lot of confidence to the findings.”
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The biggest outstanding question is what is driving the acceleration.



The study points to decreases in cloud cover and sea ice, which reflect solar energy back into space, and an increase in greenhouse gases emitted by humans, such as methane and carbon dioxide, as well as water vapor, which trap more heat in the Earth, as factors in the imbalance. But it is difficult to discern human-induced changes from cyclical variations in the climate, the researches said.
“They are all kind of blended together,” said Loeb, who added that further research is needed to determine the factors.
The period studied overlapped with fluctuations in the climate that may have played a significant role in the acceleration, including a strong El Niño event from 2014 to 2016, which led to unusually warm waters. The Pacific Decadal Oscillation is a longer-term, El Niño-like fluctuation, and around 2014 that also switched from a “cool” phase to a “warm” phase.



But, Johnson says, that doesn’t let humans off the hook. “We’re responsible for some of it,” he said. It’s just unclear how much.
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Kevin Trenberth, a distinguished scholar at the National Center of Atmospheric Research, said the results of the study aren’t particularly surprising given these climactic variations. But 15 years is not enough time to establish a trend, he said.
“Certainly you’d like to see another 10 years or something like that to see how this behaves,” he said. “The question is: Will this continue?”
That too is unclear, Johnson said. The imbalance could shrink in some years compared to others, he said, but the general trajectory appears to be upward, especially if the Pacific Decadal Oscillation stays in a warm phase.

“The longer we observe it,” he said, “the more certain we become of the trend.”


Tracking Earth’s energy imbalance will also help scientists better understand climate change, Johnson said. Other common metrics, such as air temperature, only catch a fraction of the effect of the sun’s heat. The imbalance, he said, measures “the full amount of heat that goes into the climate system.”
Regardless of the magnitude or reasons for the accelerated imbalance, the fact that it is positive is crucial, said Trenberth. “It’s the sign that matters here,” he said. “The fact that it’s positive means that global heating is happening.”
That extra heat, especially in the oceans, will mean more intense hurricanes and marine heat waves.
“I hope the heating doesn’t keep going at this clip,” Loeb said. “It’s not good news.”

 
“The longer we observe it,” he said, “the more certain we become of the trend.”

And so the trap of always needing more evidence of global warming before acting.
 
I know they’re is more science behind global warming than just CO2 emissions but China needs to knock it the **** off.
 
US needs to get way ahead on this, then sell them our tech.

I don’t know enough about international relations to have a valid viewpoint but China being the largest contributor by far to greenhouse emissions I would think the USA and allies could apply some pressure to make them “more green.”

I imagine that would severely hurt the communist party bottom dollar but **** them. If there is one country where green energy could be implemented ASAP, it would be there
 
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Lol. What a pitiful response. BAU.

**** off sally boy.

China is the biggest culprit of global warming and youd rather sit here and shit on your own country - who is top 10 leader in green energy. That’s why you’re pathetic
 
**** off sally boy.

China is the biggest culprit of global warming and youd rather sit here and shit on your own country - who is top 10 leader in green energy. That’s why you’re pathetic

The U.S. currently emits twice as much CO2 per capita as China, and has contributed much more than China historically. "But China!" is just the reason du jour to justify lack of action on our part.
 
The U.S. currently emits twice as much CO2 per capita as China, and has contributed much more than China historically. "But China!" is just the reason du jour to justify lack of action on our part.

Why don’t we use total as that seems more important than “per capita”

In 2020 China contributed 28 percent;
USA 15 percent.

Big difference

And, you’re right I’m sure historically the USA did emit greater greenhouse gasses than no -developed countries but the difference is we now have the technology to help subsidize those Carbon footprint.

But I see you’re already a China lover so I’m sure you don’t care what I have to say
 
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Why don’t we use total as that seems more important than “per capita”

In 2020 China contributed 28 percent;
USA 15 percent.

Big difference

And, you’re right I’m sure historically the USA did emit greater greenhouse gasses than no -developed countries but the difference is we now have the technology to help subsidize those Carbon footprint.

But I see you’re already a China lover so I’m sure you don’t care what I have to say
It's a global problem, so all humans are stakeholders. The only way to approach the problem in a just manner is to do so on a per capita basis. By your rationale, people who live in less populous nations are less culpable because their small nation has low total emissions, even if their per capita emissions are high (i.e. Luxembourg). The developed world, including the U.S., became wealthy via cheap energy by burning fossil fuels. The environmental costs, however, are distributed globally and many who have benefitted minimally, if at all, from the wealth generated are still bearing the costs.

I'm far from being a China lover. But it is important for them, along with emerging nations in South Asia and Africa to be able to raise the standard of living for their people. And we will all benefit if they do so in the most sustainable way possible, including reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

What I'm saying is that by no means do Americans have the moral high ground. The United States has been a world leader in many ways for the past century or more in developing technologies that have made us wealthy and contributed to greenhouse gas emissions. Now I would like to see the U.S. be a leader in developing and implementing technologies that can also generate wealth while cutting greenhouse gas emissions, along with making some lifestyle changes. Until we do so, we are far from being in a position to pressure other nations, including China, to reduce their emissions.
 
“The longer we observe it,” he said, “the more certain we become of the trend.”

And so the trap of always needing more evidence of global warming before acting.
The more evidence that comes in confirming it, increases the confidence in the results

#LiterallyHowScienceWorks
 
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It's also why the grocery store has food in it when you show up.
Missed the point again. Tilling the soil is eroding it and we are running out of time. Then when they pesticide the shit out of it so there is only 4 mos of growth and 8 mos of barren dirt the land is a wasteland. If there was no till farming amongst nonstop green growth the soil would be capturing an immense amount more of carbon in the atmosphere thus reversing a large part of our climate change. Unfortunately farmers are paid to kill us off as is with their subsidies.
 
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The more evidence that comes in confirming it, increases the confidence in the results

#LiterallyHowScienceWorks
Of course.

Screwed up my statement, which was meant to point to the people that will always complain -- and get -- just a bit more evidence. We could do that to the point that calamity is realized. (the ultimate bit of evidence)
 
Well I guess we need to bring back the hole in the ozone layer
 
The U.S. currently emits twice as much CO2 per capita as China, and has contributed much more than China historically. "But China!" is just the reason du jour to justify lack of action on our part.
I’m sure “ per capita “ is irrelevant to the actual numbers going into the atmosphere. My geo thermal cranking out 55 degree air for next to nothing today. I forked over an extra 12K for geo. How much have the usual suspects/whiners forked over to lessen your carbon footprint...
 
Then why did it snow for a week in South Texas?

Signed
Trad
Apparently you don’t understand how climate change works . Areas of the world normally temperate may experience abnormal weather patterns like we saw in Texas .
Global warming is changing weather patterns, jet streams, and the interaction between the ocean and the atmosphere.
You can expect longer, hotter and more intense heat waves like we’re seeing out west .
This year it’s spilling out into the plains . Have you ever seen such a dry and hot May and June?
I’d be worried , very worried as humans. If you think things are bad now just keep watching . It’s going to get worse.
Oh and by all means let’s keep cutting down the rainforest which also acts as a temperature check around the globe.
Humans have done nothing but destroy the planet and refuse to be inconvienienced at all. Soon wars won’t be over politics but over natural resources.
 
I don’t know enough about international relations to have a valid viewpoint but China being the largest contributor by far to greenhouse emissions I would think the USA and allies could apply some pressure to make them “more green.”

I imagine that would severely hurt the communist party bottom dollar but **** them. If there is one country where green energy could be implemented ASAP, it would be there
Where do you think all of crap we buy comes from? The US is as much at fault as China. If Americans stop buying, China will stop making.
 
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Where do you think all of crap we buy comes from? The US is as much as fault as China. If Americans stop buying, China will stop making.
This is true.
Again America wants the best but doesn’t want to pay for it. Either financially or morally. I admit I may be not as green as I could be but I’m conscious of it and constantly striving to improve . We could do a lot if more people made an effort . Course if they refuse, soon they won’t have a planet to enjoy.
 
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