Is it global warming or is it climate change?

Question

With some continents experiencing the coldest winters on record. Last year being the coldest ever in South America & Russia. It makes me wonder if the planet is heating up as some reports suggest. Or is our climate just experiencing a change?

Answer 1

Average temperature change is cooler in some places warmer in other but increasing overall.

We have the technology to move past the carbon debate. We do not have time to go through the government red tape. With oil on the decline, we have to make massive changes, swiftly. But we have to take the time to get it right. We can not do this twice, or three times - like in the past; we have to put our money in the best return on investments and where we get multiple benefits. We have had most of this technology for 20 years but have not implemented it. We know what is cost effective; we know where we need better technology. Without governments mandating renewable resources that do not harm the environment, we are doomed. The fossil fuel depression with global warming will be the worst economic downturn in world history. But this is not doom and gloom; we have the ability to fix our mess and enough time. Solar Concentrating Electric Power Plants, wind, wave, small hydro-electric, geothermal, and nuclear energy are what we need. We must have a pollution surcharge where we pay the real price (health effects, global warming and cleanup) for oil, natural gas, coal, cigarettes, cooling towers, cars, trains and airplanes. Raising the price of fossil fuel today gives us more time to solve these problems and helps pay for the 20 Trillion Dollars worth of renewable energy over the next 10 years. Remember knowledge is power and this information is very powerful. Humans have 50 trillion dollars worth of stuff that runs on cheep oil, natural gas, or coal.

I attended the Focus the Nation at Sierra College on 1-31-08. The event was the 2% Solution, a 2% reduction over 40 years to solve global warming. Oil is a nonrenewable resource and we are running out-but not soon – anyone now want to pay $30 per gallon for gas. The problem is the oil will be gone in less than 30 years at present rates of consumption without projected increases and shortages (gone at least to run cars, heat homes, power electric plants or air travel). The 2% Solution is ok for the USA for a 10 year plan to cut 20%, but I would prefer a 5% Solution over the next 10 years for a 50% reduction. At the same time, we have to be building renewable energy so at the end of 10 years we can cut an additional 20%. With the peak of oil in the 1970’s, peak NG in the 1990’s, having mined cheep coal, the peak of ocean fishing in the 1980’s, and the peak of uranium in the 1990’s, humans must stop procrastinating and make real changes to keep earth sustainable including in the energy debate, finance and regulation. Over the next 90 years carbon dioxide is projected to skyrocket as human’s burn more fossil fuels, but we have to come up with what will take its place and cleanup our mess. One of the big problems we have is at some time Yellowstone will blow its top again, as the magma move closer to the surface, creating a nuk winter. After that we will not have to worry about the destruction of the ozone layer, global warming or pollution.

Many of mankind’s advancements cause earth surface to warm, destroy the ozone layer, kill off endanger species, heat cities, and in some way cause more dramatic destruction.  Blacktop and buildings (roads, roofs and parking lots-heat cities), deforestation (air pollution, soil erosion), duststorms (increase hurricanes and cyclones, cause lung diseases), fires (cause pollution, mud slides, and deforestation), refrigerants (like CFC's) and solvents (including benzene destroy the ozone layer raising skin cancer rates) and plastics; cars, airplanes, ships and most electricity production (causes pollution including raised CO2 levels and increased lung and other diseases); these human problems we must fix to keep life on earth sustainable! Humans have destroyed half of the wetlands, cut down nearly half of the rain forest, and advance on the earths grasslands while advancing desertification which increases duststorms.

The result is:  change is on the way, we just do not know what changes (where and when). Look beyond the hype, beyond the weather, beyond a quarterly report and beyond today. President Bush has made a choice of energy (ethanol) over food and feeding the starving people around the world; this is a choice China has rejected. The fact is Bush wants to buy food from out side the USA to send to starving people since our grain is not available. Now what USA Presidential candidate is giving you the facts so you can make an educated decision of which one to vote for?

But with that we must understand we have never seen what is now happening before. CO2 has never lead to temperature change, but temperature change has led to increases in CO2. The models have to be made as we go along with current evidence! But again adding a small amount of CO2 to the atmosphere enlarges the earths sun collection causing warming; increase water in the atmosphere and it forms clouds cooling earth but sometimes causing flooding. Even natural events are warming earth and causing destruction. The sun has an increased magnetic field causing increases in earthquakes (more destruction), volcanoes (wow, great destruction), and sun spots. Lighting produces ozone near the surface (raising air pollution levels). The USA Mayor's have taken a stand and I believe are on the right track, we can have control and can have economic growth. The sun is available to produce energy, bring light to buildings and makes most of human’s fresh water. Composting is the answer to desertification. New dams are the answer to fresh water storage, energy and cooling earth by evaporation, we need many small ones all over (California needs 100 by 2012 and we are far behind).

That is why I founded CoolingEarth.org, a geoengineering web sight where you can learn more about earth, the atmosphere, and how to sustain life on earth’s surface. Watch for changes in the sight coming soon.

Answer 2

Didn't you ask this yesterday?

Answer 3

Both terms are valid, but their meanings are not the same:

Climate change is happening and, overall, the world's average surface temperature is increasing; hence the term "global warming".

But global warming is only one aspect of global climate change: in some areas, there may even be some cooling. Essentially, this is because global warming could alter the flow of winds and oceanic currents.

Hope this helps. :)

Answer 4

As the weather gets colder and colder, the AGW zealots have changed their buzzwords from "global warming" to "climate change" hoping nobody would notice.

You obviously did.

Answer 5

Studies in Hawaii over the last 60 years have documented concrete evidence of an increase in temperature - most significant in the last 20 years and rising.  

Cold winters are only an indicator of climate change - the true and total impacts of climate change are just beginning to unfold.  

The key is climate change - in the earth's history - climate shift is what happens with a warming of planets - the north pole used to be tropical like the everglades and so did South Africa.  

Increases in ocean temperature are contributing to many things......

Check out this book:  Climate Crash for more data on paleoclimatology.

Answer 6

Its climate change due to global warming.

By the poles heating up, the mean temperatures of the oceans comes closer to equality, so the ocean currents are weaker and brink less warm seas to places like Russia and Argentina, meaning these places get colder.

mean while, temperate zones get hotter and more fluctuating weather.

Its all to do with the oceans.

Answer 7

climate change, and as the AGW believers see the earth is cooling, they now call it climate change but still blame us for it.

Answer 8

Agreed, the two terms are correct.  BUT...  the term "climate change" suggests a wholly natural event that has been going on for thousands of years.  The term "global warming" infers a man-made event - and is therefore taxable.  I'm getting extremely cynical in my old age.

Answer 9

Climate shange is a natural part of the Earth's environment. Warm and cold periods have come and gone repeatedly over the billions of years.

Sometimes it warms up. Sometimes it cools down.

It has done this since Creation with and without mankind.

Just ask yourself: What kind of SUV did the wooly mammoth drve?

Answer 10

Really it has to be climate change.  So many places are getting record cold, that global warming is a misnomer.

Answer 11

Global warming means that on average the temperature of the earth is rising.

Climate change means that as weather patterns change, different regions will experience different sorts of weather.

It is possible for the planet to warm on average, while some places experience colder weather. There is no contradiction, both can be used depending on whether you are talking about the earth's average temperature rise, or variations in climate brought about by this rise.

Answer 12

global warming doesn't exist! think! the earth has gone through heating and cooling periods all through history! it's all a load of c**p!

Answer 13

Climate change is an established scientific fact, man made global warming is a political doctrine.

Climate change doesn't happen uniformly around the world, some parts get warmer while others get colder, same for wetter or dryer.

global climate is a dynamic process and, as such, is always in a state of change, with or without man. One thing it is never is static

Answer 14

Two names used loosely for the same thing.  

Global warming is not a blowtorch that eliminates winter. It's a small but steady increase in AVERAGE temperature that will cause great damage if we do nothing.

For a short time, in some places, winter weather can overcome global warming. But, long run, over the whole Earth, the AVERAGE temperature is increasing. NASA data:

http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/2007/

Answer 15

they both are same things

Answer 16

.......or just plain hype?

Answer 17

both the same meaning.

Answer 18

The two terms are correct. It depends what continent you are on. In Europe we usually say climate change but then again alot of us say global warming. It two terms have the exact same meaning.   Hope this helped!!

Answer 19

Selective reporting; you omit to say that western and central Russia also had their highest ever recorded summer temperatures last year as well. In Moscow, temperatures on 28 May reached 32.9°C.

The Arctic continued to warm, opening its Northwest Passage for the first time in centuries.

On Aug. 17, 2007 the National Snow and Ice Data Center reported there was less sea ice in the Arctic than ever before on record.

The World Meteorological Organization said global land surface temperatures in January and April 2007 were the warmest since such data began to be recorded in 1880; 1.89°C warmer than average for January and 1.37°C warmer than average for April.

So lets look at the bigger picture; 2007 was notable for unusual temperatures and extreme weather events worldwide.

Many European countries had their warmest January on record. January temperatures in The Netherlands were the highest since measurements were first taken in 1706, averaging about 7.1°C (2.8°C above 1961-1990 average) while in Germany the temperatures were 4.6°C above the 1961-1990 average.

England and Wales that year had their wettest May and June since records began in 1766.

At exactly the same time Britain suffered flooding, a July heat-wave (with record temperatures) claimed hundreds of lives in Southern Europe, with up to 500 dying in Hungary alone. Germany had its driest April since 1901 followed by its wettest May since 1901.

Temperature records for summer heat were broken in south-eastern Europe in June and July and in western and central Russia in May. In many European countries, April was the warmest ever recorded. In India, a heat wave during mid-May produced temperatures as high as 45-50°C.

The Asian cyclone season has now been very intense two years running and there were droughts in Australia and China and southern USA, but bad flooding in regions of South & North America, across West, Central and East Africa and also Indonesia, China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal.  Heavy rains also hit southern China in June, with nearly 14 million people affected by floods and landslides. Oman and Iran had their first documented cyclone since 1945.

Argentina and Chile saw unusually cold winter temperatures in July while South Africa had its first significant snowfall since 1981 in June.

There was also NO El Nino or La Nino over the summer (both often associated with extreme weather events); a La Nina formed in Sept. which will influence weather into next year if it continues.

The return of flooding to England this winter, heavy flooding in West Africa and the heavy snowfall in China are due to La Nina's influence, pushing air streams and atmospheric bodies of moisture around.

Changes to climate are really about changes to the average over a period of 30 years or so. One event is not evidence of climate change. But if such extreme events worldwide become more frequent in future decades then this would be a clear sign of climate change.

A greater frequency of droughts and floods is one of the hallmarks of climate change, and is in line with IPCC projections: The IPCC impact assessment projects it to be very likely that hot extremes, heat waves and heavy precipitation events will continue to become more frequent.

I'll also point out the obvious, which is that warmer air holds more moisture, it has to go somewhere. Also that if the temperature is below zero then this moisture falls as snow. We’ve only seen a half degree rise in temperature in the past 50 yrs, many countries see winter temperatures fall well below zero. (It often reaches minus 37 on Baffin Island in winter for example), winter hasn’t been abolished in those areas, temperatures will need to rise a lot more to do that.

But thinking that climate change brought about by global warming will just mean more days working on a tan is an oversimplified, naive view.

Answer 20

Climate change due to global warming - because the earth as a whole warms up, the ice on the Arctic and Antarctic is melting, cooling off the air which can (as wind) be blown to continents near it and cool those off. Global warming does not mean everything heats up evenly, we haven't exactly put the earth into a microwave!

Basically, the weather is pretty messed up right now! We've had freezing temperatures just last week and late spring weather this week with temperatures up to 15°C and more in some European countries - NOT NORMAL. Last year here in Belgium we had a heatwave for all of April - over 30°C in a month where we usually don't get anywhere over 20°C if we're lucky; predictions and common sense say we're probably going to have the same this year, then a relatively cold summer. What does that tell you?