I posted a story this morning about the science of climate change. No politics. No speculation. No opinion. And as expected it solicited a lot of passionate opinion on the subject.
“Much warmer? 1.3 degrees isn’t climate change.”
“Get real folks.”
“The Earth does this about every 300 yrs. It’s called weather.”
“We were covered with 200 feet of ice three times before.”
“If weather didn’t change, why would we need weather forecasters? What a joke WQAD…”
Unfortunately, the argument will continue until people pay attention to the data, understand what it tells us, and be open-minded enough to change their minds. For me, I can say with absolute certainty that climate change (aka. global warming) has been proven to me as science. I was one of a few Meteorologists who participated in a Yale University Climate Change symposium many years ago. It’s pretty cut and dry to me personally. And as a Meteorologist with a Bachelor of Science degree and have an obligation to pay attention to the subject. But my job isn’t to change minds, rather place the facts in the public discourse.
We are warming more drastically than any other time in modern history and it shows no signs of stopping. That’s been proven as fact to me by people who possess much more knowledge than I do: NASA. But it’s not just me believing what someone says. And the data didn’t come from some government conspiracy. I pay attention and see how our weather is changing. It is a fact our average temperatures are going up. I’ve studied it. Through 2009, the 30-year average (1970-2000) for Rockford, Illinois showed the coldest high temperature of 27 degrees in the middle of Winter. In 2010 when we began using the 1980-2010 data set, the average went up to 30°. No more average days with highs in the twenties. In five years when a new 30 year data set is used, Rockford won’t have any average high below freezing. That’s an incredible change!
It is a fact our winters are much warmer than they used to be…changing more than summers. It’s also fact that climate change is more noticed at high latitudes because it’s more significant there. More people in Alaska believe in climate change versus Iowa because Alaskans see it happening. The most important fact is climate change is already impacting economies and people.
It’s unfortunate that the politics of climate change gets in the way of the dissemination of real information. If I could go back and tell Al Gore not to become the poster child for the movement, I totally would. But that’s why I feel obligated to report on weather and the science of weather. It has nothing to do with my thoughts on politics, economics, or the “liberal media.” Why does climate change have to be a liberal thing? It’s happening equally to liberals and conservatives! It’s happening to Americans as it’s happening to foreigners. I still can’t believe why United States has the highest proportion of climate change disbelievers in the World. It is okay to change your mind sometimes. It’s okay to see another’s point of view.
We are wasting time finger-pointing and arguing about whether it is occurring. Let’s figure out why it’s happening and what we can do to stop it. Speaking of being conservative, let’s conserve what we have and make sure it’s suitable for the next generation.
If you want to debate this further, I can be reached via e-mail. If you think it’s not my place to report the science of weather, I encourage you to contact station management.
Finally, I want to thank everyone for the discussion. The fact we can peacefully and respectfully talk about this subject is enough for me. It’s not my job to change minds but if I’ve made you think about the facts just a little bit, that’s good too!
-Meteorologist Eric Sorensen
