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mac
Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17747
Location: Berkeley, California
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 Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 10:56 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: | It’s now clear that sea levels are rising around the world.
An international fleet of satellites is showing that they have already risen an average of nearly 3 inches since 1992, with some ocean areas showing a rise as great as 9 inches, and an unavoidable sea level rise of at least several feet is coming, say NASA scientists who are analyzing the satellite measurements.
“Given what we know now about how the ocean expands as it warms, and how ice sheets and glaciers are adding more water to the seas, it’s pretty certain we are locked into at least 3 feet of sea level rise, and probably more,” said R. Steven Nerem, a University of Colorado Arctic specialist, during a televised briefing Wednesday.
“But we don’t know whether it will happen within a century or somewhat longer.”
Three sets of ongoing space satellites have been reporting measurements continually for the past 23 years and are committed to keeping track in the future, said Nerem, NASA’s leader of a new interdisciplinary team of sea level specialists.
The NASA scientists said the rate of sea level increases varies across the world’s ocean basins. Those differences are caused by many influences, including the effects of ocean currents and natural cycles like the “Pacific Decadal Oscillation” that brings El Niño to California.
“Sea level along the West Coast has actually fallen over the past 20 years because long-term natural cycles are hiding the impact of global warming,” said Joshua Willis, an oceanographer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena. “However, there are signs this pattern is changing and we can expect accelerated rates of sea level rise along this coast over the next decade.”
The NASA scientists estimate that about one-third of the observed sea level rise is caused by the expansion of water in all the oceans as they heat up due to global warming. Another third is the result of billions of tons of ice dumped into the oceans from the massive Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. The remaining third results from melting mountain glaciers, the scientists conclude.
Their satellite measurements show that the Greenland ice sheet — almost as big as Alaska — sheds an average of 303 billion tons of ice each year, and the Antarctic ice sheet — larger than the United States and India combined — has lost an average of 118 billion tons of ice a year into the sea.
“We’ve seen from the paleoclimate record that sea level rise of as much as 10 feet in a century or two is possible if the ice sheets fall apart rapidly,” said Thomas P. Wagner, NASA’s program chief for climate change and the oceans. “We’re seeing evidence that the ice sheets are waking up, but we need to understand them better before we can say we’re in a new era of rapid ice loss.”
The first satellite to measure sea level rise was named Topex-Poseidon, a joint mission of NASA and CNES, the French space agency. It carried two radar altimeters and flew in orbit from 1992 until 2005. Then came Jason-1, another U.S.-French mission launched that same year and still flying. A third satellite, Jason-2, is also measuring sea level rise with more sophisticated instruments, and another version called Jason-3 is coming next year.
David Perlman is The San Francisco Chronicle science editor. E-mail: dperlman@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @daveperlman |
I wonder what nit mrygbe or NW will pick to try to divert us from this coming catastrophe--which will cost trillions. |
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nw30
Joined: 21 Dec 2008
Posts: 6485
Location: The eye of the universe, Cen. Cal. coast
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| Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 12:26 pm Post subject: |
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Well, if you insist.
I'll just pick out one sentence out of this gloom and doom article that you chose to post. If taken seriously, this should have everybody running around building dikes as fast as they could, 3' since '92, WOW, some areas have even risen 9", double WOW! It's catastrophic!!!!
And now for that one sentence~
“Sea level along the West Coast has actually fallen over the past 20 years because long-term natural cycles are hiding the impact of global warming,”
Seriously? Still trying to have it both ways, it's hiding, it's hiding, that's clever.
There's my nit. |
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mac
Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17747
Location: Berkeley, California
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| Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 12:55 pm Post subject: |
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| Deep thought. Some people don't realize that climate (as opposed to weather) is made up of different physical phenomena. Thus, we need to look at trends over a period of time--not one winter, or fifteen years. Rant on. You didn't disappoint, and actually seemed to have read the posting. Next time try for insight. |
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nw30
Joined: 21 Dec 2008
Posts: 6485
Location: The eye of the universe, Cen. Cal. coast
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| Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 1:27 pm Post subject: |
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| You didn't disappoint either, I expect you to continue to post catastrophic "studies", for, well, for as long as it takes for us to all be wiped out by rising oceans, while we were reading your posts about the upcoming doom and gloom. |
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techno900
Joined: 28 Mar 2001
Posts: 4161
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| Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 3:06 pm Post subject: |
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from mac's post: | Quote: | | and an unavoidable sea level rise of at least several feet is coming, say NASA scientists who are analyzing the satellite measurements. |
Talking about the 3' rise - | Quote: | | “But we don’t know whether it will happen within a century or somewhat longer.” |
"several feet" - How much longer? A thousand years?
And if it is "unavoidable", then we move inland and don't worry about the CO2. |
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mac
Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17747
Location: Berkeley, California
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| Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 3:12 pm Post subject: |
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Techno--just for a minute, think about the US infrastructure within 2 to 3 feet of sea level. At the moment, 39% of the population--123 million people--live in coastal counties. The roads, the flood control systems, and the wastewater systems are an investment that makes living in these counties possible. Like I said, trillions.
Maybe you conservatives will get a chance to live without government as all of these systems are destroyed, increases in taxes are blocked, and the oil companies make off with the money they made--on lands that were usually public to start with.
Carry on. |
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mrgybe
Joined: 01 Jul 2008
Posts: 5180
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| Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 3:31 pm Post subject: |
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| Oh those naughty oil companies! |
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mac
Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17747
Location: Berkeley, California
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| Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 3:45 pm Post subject: |
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For once the gybester is right:
The Oil Industry's (Renewed) Campaign Against AB 32
California's transportation fuel providers are slated in January 2015 to join the state's other major polluting industries (such as power plants and cement factories) already under the cap-and-trade emissions limits. Including the emissions from transportation fuels like gasoline under the statewide cap has been in the works for almost a decade.
| Quote: | The cap-and-trade system places an upper limit on greenhouse gas emissions (cap) and requires polluters to either reduce their pollution or buy or trade a diminishing number of pollution allowances (trade). The proceeds from selling pollution allowances to large emitters fund projects that further reduce emissions in California, and at least one-quarter of the funds must benefit disadvantaged communities, which are disproportionately affected by climate pollution.
Rather than investing in cleaner sources of energy, more efficient production and refining processes, and less-polluting products that would reduce climate pollution and improve air quality for California's residents, the oil industry has invested in a front group-led marketing campaign to avoid being held accountable for its pollution. Since 2009, the oil companies have spent more than $70 million on lobbying in the state. |
Here's how they launder the money: http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/solutions/fight-misinformation/global-warming-skeptic.html#.Vd92wflVhBc
Naughty is perhaps too tame a term. |
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nw30
Joined: 21 Dec 2008
Posts: 6485
Location: The eye of the universe, Cen. Cal. coast
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| Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 6:32 pm Post subject: |
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| mac wrote: | Techno--just for a minute, think about the US infrastructure within 2 to 3 feet of sea level. At the moment, 39% of the population--123 million people--live in coastal counties. The roads, the flood control systems, and the wastewater systems are an investment that makes living in these counties possible. Like I said, trillions.
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Why should he or anyone, the way you are trying to present this, is with the assumption that it will happen over a very short period of time. That's the only way it would cost trillions.
I highly doubt that, but if it were to happen, it would be over a very long period of time, time enough for the human race to adapt to it, to evolve with it.
But no, it will cost trillions because the human race is too stupid to know about the catastrophe, and won't adapt until it's too late.
A catastrophe is something that happens quickly w/o proper preparation.
THERE WILL BE NO CATASTROPHE.
You remind me of an evangelist that I saw a long time ago, standing on a ladder, in the middle of Union Square in downtown SF, screaming fire and brimstone, wrapped in doom and gloom.
"Be ready, the end is near, you sinners!!!". |
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mac
Joined: 07 Mar 1999
Posts: 17747
Location: Berkeley, California
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| Posted: Thu Aug 27, 2015 6:55 pm Post subject: |
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| Keep your eyes tightly closed, because your head is ...buried in the sand. |
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