Global Warming...
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Aug 1, 2005
Global warming making hurricanes more ferocious
DENVER - Latest research on global warming seems to show that major storms spinning in both the Atlantic and the Pacific since the 1970s have increased in duration and intensity by about 50 per cent.
Global warming making hurricanes more ferocious
Scientists call the findings both surprising and alarming because they suggest global warming is influencing storms now - rather than in the distant future.
But the research does not suggest global warming is generating more hurricanes and typhoons.
These trends are closely linked to increases in the average temperatures of the ocean surface and also correspond to increases in global average atmospheric temperatures during the same period.
Before this study, most researchers believed global warming's contribution to powerful hurricanes was too slight to accurately measure.
Most forecasts do not have climate change making a real difference in tropical storms until 2050 or later.
Theories and computer simulations indicate that global warming should generate an increase in storm intensity, in part because warmer temperatures would heat up the surface of the oceans.
Especially in the Atlantic and Caribbean basins, pools of warming seawater provide energy for storms as they swirl and grow over the open oceans.
This year marked the first time on record that the Atlantic spawned four named storms by early July, as well as the earliest category 4 storm on record.
Hurricanes are ranked on an intensity scale of 1 to 5.
In the past decade, the south-eastern United States and the Caribbean basin have been pummeled by the most active hurricane cycle on record. Forecasters expect the stormy trend to continue for another 20 years or more. -- AP -
hmm.. what r ur views on global warming?
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GLOBAL WARMING AND INTENSIFYING STORMS
THE LATEST research on global warming and storms was done by climatologist Kerry Emanuel of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who looked at data collected from actual storms rather than using computer models to predict future storm behaviour.
He studied records of storm measurements made by aircraft and satellites since the 1950s. He found the amount of energy released in these storms in both the North Atlantic and the North Pacific oceans has increased, especially since the mid-1970s.
In the Atlantic, the sea surface temperatures show a pronounced upward trend. The same is true in the North Pacific, though the data there is more variable, he said.
'The total energy dissipated by hurricanes turns out to be well correlated with tropical sea surface temperatures,' he said. 'The large upswing in the past decade is unprecedented and probably reflects the effects of global warming.'
But some scientists questioned his methods. For example, he did not consider wind speed information from some powerful storms in the 1950s and 1960s because the details of those storms are inconsistent. -- AP -
global warming accelerate the consumption of oil... and deplete the oil reserve tat is already so little left...
petrol price increase... a domino effect on many many economies
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How the world is changing
Introduction
While the effect of human activity on the global climate is hotly debated, physical signs of environmental change are all around us.
Some scientists say an increase in the rate of melting of the world's glaciers is evidence of global warming.
Argentina's Upsala Glacier was once the biggest in South America, but it is now disappearing at a rate of 200 metres per year.
Other scientists say its reduction is due to complicated shifts in glacial dynamics and local geology. -
Glacial change
American photographer Gary Braasch has been documenting images of environmental change since 1999.
The image on the left is from an 1859 etching of the Rhone glacier in Valais, Switzerland, and shows ice filling the valley.
In 2001, the glacier had shrunk by some 2.5km, and its 'snout' had shifted about 450 metres higher up.
Image: Gary Braasch © -
Rising tides
Some scientists predict that a warmer climate will trigger more violent storms, which will cause increased rates of coastal erosion.
This is a section of shoreline at Cape Hatteras in North Carolina in the USA, pictured in 1999 and 2004. The southern United States and Caribbean region were battered by a series of powerful hurricanes last year.
Rising sea levels are also expected to speed up coastal erosion.
Image: Gary Braasch © -
Vanishing islands
Other parts of the world could face even more drastic change.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a consortium of several thousand independent scientists, predicts that sea levels could rise by between 9 and 88cm in the next century.
This would threaten low-lying islands such as Tuvalu in the Pacific. These images, taken on the same day this year, show the effects of a higher than usual tide.
Image: Gary Braasch © -
No snow
As the climate warms up, mountainous regions may experience lower levels of snowfall.
This image shows Mount Hood in Oregon at the same time in late summer in 1985 and 2002.
Image: Gary Braasch © -
More pests
Tree-eating wood beetles are likely to benefit from a warmer climate and reproduce in ever-increasing numbers.
These images show damage to White Spruce trees in Alaska caused by the pests.
Image: Gary Braasch © -
scary.. imagine those pple living on tt island.. so dangerous..Originally posted by poon cho tang:
Vanishing islands
Other parts of the world could face even more drastic change.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a consortium of several thousand independent scientists, predicts that sea levels could rise by between 9 and 88cm in the next century.
This would threaten low-lying islands such as Tuvalu in the Pacific. These images, taken on the same day this year, show the effects of a higher than usual tide.
Image: Gary Braasch © -
all the pics really showed a big diffce
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Then how? What can we do? Don't give me that cfc crap.
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wat cfcOriginally posted by ditzy:Then how? What can we do? Don't give me that cfc crap. 
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whos fault is it aniway? confirm those bloody brains tt came up with the clearing of land and bal bla bla. globalisation increases global warming in the same time
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Must be those bus freaks out there who so gian seow about buses. Buses are the major uses of diesel fuel and contribute to at least 45% of the state of global warming over the past 31 years. Yes, yes, I'm waiting for sbst275 to debunk me.
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It is just NOT the many CFCs waste and exhaust fume from car only around the world. They contrinuted only a very very small portion of the cause.
The major contribution is the industrial waste fume that not just come from 3rd world countries BUT from the many developed world such as the the USA and CHINA since they the major player.
The expert from these countries or many countries make known of the consequences but yet the politic maker do not want to lose the BIG profit and $$$ ripe from those industrial sector whom they pray as GOD of Fortune!
There is alternative method and saver but to make the changes to these industrial technology will not only cause the goverment and big player a LARGE amount of $$$ for the changes but also the existing technology changes that been operating for many many decades.
Thus whom are willing be the 1st party to come out the CASH and be the first guinea pig to set such a wastefull example. Like what we used to say ...You die I die!! BUt whom want to be the FIRST!
Thus, the global warning threat continue.
We hear reports, given GOOD evidences and picture, plenty of advises and alternatives, warning to the public (such as we commoner) and etc THAT ARE spread by those SMALL player so called the SAFE the World community BUT their work will always ended in the political end. JUst like so call NATO - No ACTION Talk ONLY!
So what is Global warning? We all know what it is.
The temperature of our beloved mother world rise each year and the north/south poles iceberg will start to melt away. Someday, million or hundred year from now, it will flood the world with water and our beloved land will be submerged in water. JUST like what the bible say, it end of world is near. We will be heat by fire storm , ie the GLOBAL warning, and the world will come to end.
For those who knew or dont live to see it, they will put that thought away since it will happen after many many generation to come.
Let the work AND problems be solved by the futurer. It is the selfish thought that never put to end of this problem! Afterall, we only HUMAN!
That mine contribution. -
hmm pretty true... thx for ur contribution Hex
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wonder wad will happen to earth in years to come. more disasters? new diseases? bloody wars?
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ironically, humans being the most 'intelligent' living organism on earth will be the cause of their own eventual extinction
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Actually knowing all these really dampens my hopes for the future world. And I'm only 18..
The scary thing is, alot of people knows the effects and consequences of our pollutions to Mother Earth, but yet..
Yes humans are indeed intelligent, but where would all this brilliance get us if we continues to poison our Mother?
NOWHERE.. but absolute destruction from the wrath of nature.
I guess its greed, we are never satisfied with what we have in our environment.. Its time we gonna pay.. at a price which no one could even visualize..