Global Warming - Is it all hot air?

Its been a while since i got totally up to date with recent global warming topics  but i came acoss this interesting article.  Worth taking a peek..  its actually about a newly released book but its an interesting artcle..well worth the read

here's the article

Global Warming can be a misleading term... it seems to be more global increased volatility in expected normal temperature... too hot OR too cold. Neither a good thing. Seems to be more often too hot is the main worry (hence the term global warming) but too cold also a fear.

Interesting point here:

Scientists announced in the July 21, 1999, edition of the journal Nature findings that suggest that global warming can sometimes lead to cold weather or even a worldwide freeze.

Scientists have long known that a severe cold spell occurred after the end of the Pleistocene glaciation, approximately 8,200 years ago. The cause, however, has been a mystery. The authors of the Nature article write that the centuries long cold spell might have been caused by meltwater from the disappearing glaciers, cooling the North Atlantic.

it seems Ocean currents are the key

Researchers are discovering that hidden 'rivers' run through the oceans, and these powerful currents hold the destiny of our planet's climate.

The beneficial aspects of ocean currents have long been known. For countries on the east side of the Atlantic, winters are a balmy holiday compared with the same latitudes on the west: the frigid coasts of Newfoundland and Labrador. It's a reminder that "weather" is not just a matter of the Sun's heat affecting the Earth's atmosphere. The world's interconnected oceans can store up solar heat in one part of the globe in one season, and invisible rivers in the ocean can transport the warmth thousands of kilometres to another part of the globe and deliver it in another season.

In the case of the North Atlantic, heat is carried northward and eastward by the Gulf Stream. This current warms the coast evenly through the year, in winter as well as summer. Averaged over a year, the Gulf Stream provides Western Europe with a third as much warmth as the Sun does.

This ocean warmth is so important to Europe that climatologists are seriously concerned about the stability of the Gulf Stream. If it switched off, Europe would be plunged into a mini-Ice Age. And current studies suggest that the unseen river in the North Atlantic is dangerously fickle.

The focus of today's worries is the problem of global warming - the way that human activities are changing the climate, as the world gets warmer through the build-up of so-called greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide. Climatologists think that global warming may put the brakes on the Gulf Stream. While the rest of the world comes to swelter in greenhouse conditions, Europe would freeze!

This concern is based on a new understanding of how the great ocean currents are all interconnected. The Gulf Stream is part of a giant pattern of moving water that stretches right around the globe.

but anyways   ...   i thought the original article was interesting  discussing how  many of our efforts are misguided  and yet costing us/economies a game changing amount of money.   Now i dont proffess to know whats right or wrong..  but interesting to see if from that prospective

Oceans AND cars I think are the key... Oceans the work of Mother  Nature... point taken we can do little... but cars are all us lot.

How much CO2 comes out 1 billion cars or 2 billion even?

Thought: CO2 from 1 car with engine on in a garage enough to kill you.

Apparently there are now 1 billion vehicles being driven globally... and this number is expected to DOUBLE to 2 billion within the next 20 years. There's even a book about it "Two Billion Cars".

2009:
Author of “Two Billion Cars” to speak at KU School of Engineering

A presentation on the future of automobiles and
transportation will be given by Dan Sperling, author of “Two Billion Cars: Driving Toward Sustainability,”.

Sounds like this guy Sperling knows his stuff...

Sperling is a professor of engineering and environmental science and policy at the University of California-Davis and director of UC Davis’ Institute of Transportation Studies. He also serves on the California Air Resources Board and chairs the Future of Mobility Council of the Davos World Economic Forum.

However, sounds likesome reasons for hope... Cool>>>

Sperling will discuss his book and the prospect of a world that will explode from its current 1 billion cars to 2 billion cars within the next 20 years. He will discuss the risks to the global environment and how some of the worst current offenders – California and China – are taking the lead in developing novel solutions that offer the possibility of a sustainable path forward. With the policies embraced in California and the honest recognition of the problems in China, “Two Billion Cars” contends there really is reason for hope in the drive for sustainability.

I recently heard about a novel idea which I thought was genius. Basically, it involves reforestation around the equatorial belt (I might have that term wrong).

The site for it: http://www.weforest.com/

sounds so simple...        i went to madeira   weird island

Yeah, that's the thing right? It's so basic. Like, how come we didn't think of it before?

what if they went to far...      !

How do you mean?

if they were too successful and changed things too much haha...  natures a fickle beast

Hmmm... well, the earth seemed to be doing fine before we came along and chopped all the trees down?

But yeah, I get your point. Balance is hard to achieve

BMW has an answer... best of both world's... green and powerful (150mph):

BMW’s new Vision Efficient Dynamics concept is remarkable to look at and even more so when you consider the numbers. Powered by a three-cylinder turbodiesel and two electric motors (one in each axle), the all-wheel drive produces 262 kW (356 bhp) and 800 NM of torque, giving it M power performance (0-100 km/h in 4.8 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 250 km/h) thanks in part to its slippery drag coefficient of just 0.22. It’ll run 50 km (31 miles) in electric mode alone and its consumption in the EU test cycle is 3.76 litres/100 km (75.1 mph imp) with CO2 emissions of 99 grams/km.

Also who said green wasn't cool? Check it out...

Hmmm that looks like its based on the design of the CSL. Interesting

wowzers...        like the jetsons family car

I was watching Mythbusters on the weekend, and they were tackling the myth that electric cars are slower than petrol cars. (FYI, Myth Busted)

But it got me thinking - in terms of the overall green cost - are electrics really saving the world? I've looked and haven't been able to find a 'big picture' comparison between the two. Does anyone know?

I mean, is Clarkson right?

It appears to be about CO2 emissions per mile... not just miles per gallon. CO2 always seems to be the biggest concern with global warming.

Useful table I found online:
UK's Greenest Cars based on CO2 emissions (grams per km)...
Smart fortwo pulse cabrio (799cc),   89 grams/km
Toyota Prius T3 Hybrid 1.8 (1798cc),  89 grams/km
Seat Ibiza SC Ecomotive 1.4 (1422cc), 98 grams/km

UK's WORST CO2 Offenders...
Lamborghini Murcielago LP640 (6500cc), 500 grams/km
Ferrari 612 Scaglietti (5748cc), 470 grams/km
Bentley Azure T (6761cc), 465 grams/km

Note the trend from above table... smaller boring cars MUCH cleaner, polluting less than 100 grams CO2 per km... then the big-engine-bad-boys (Ferrari etc.) polluting up to 5x more or 500 grams/km.

Back to the BMW 150mph Hybrid example earlier... best of both worlds. "CO2 emissions of 99 grams per km" - so would be one of cleanest & greenest cars on the market... but 0-60mph (or 0-100kph) in 4.8 seconds... which rivals super-cars. It can be done, as always technology is the key!

Well, I'm wondering more about the holistic effect, rather than just emissions. Something that takes into account manufacturing, distribution, usage and maintenance.

I've been wondering if we've been looking at the issue myopically. Also with other products.

seems like a lot of people making money out of being 'green'. It is the new way for people to brand a item/good.

Good point H2O I'd have to agree with you there... all I would add is to brand an item/good successfully you do need some kind of reasonable and useful underlying product, not simply hot air - like the headline of this discussion.   I would argue there is a strong global need/demand for efficient AND cool go-green products... about time too. Greenpeace was soooo left wing.
Time for the capitalist-go-green brigade and the marketing gurus to REALLY get things done. However, credit to Greenpeace in the early days for getting environmental issues on the map when nobody else cared.

Well said asianpunter .... and yes good headline.