Essentially all warmth on earth comes from the Sun. So as we project “climate” in the future it makes sense to get a handle on expected output from the Sun. For instance, right now we are in a solar activity lull and due for a drop in solar radiation.
Once radiation leaves the Sun, it must reach us to warm us. But reflective clouds turn some of that radiation away. So what breakdown of clouds do we have? We don’t know.
To date, however, it has not been possible to quantify the influence of the cloud lifetime effect on climate. The estimates vary hugely and range from no influence whatsoever to a cooling effect that is sufficient to more than compensate for the heating effect of carbon dioxide.
The earth saw huge temperature variances prior to modern man put CO2 into the air. The focus solely on CO2 as a “warmer” ignores hundreds of other factors. I maintain the focus is politically based, driven by socialists and those of a redistributive bent.
I don’t trust climatology. I rank it somewhere near Congress.
October 7th, 2009 at 9:39 pm
Cosmic rays from the sun have a large influence on cloud origination. Low sun activity reduces cloud cover and thus cloud reflection and rain. More surface sunshine warms the air but the lack of cloud cover may mean no net temperature rise. Nobody knows!
October 8th, 2009 at 3:08 pm
Exactly, nobody knows. The socialists know what they want though.