Climate Change

Scientists have traded in their thermometers for tree rings and what their finding out is that climate change is not so natural anymore.

Scientists have been talking about climate change for years but only recently have people started to listen.

Why now?

Universities around the country are participating in a series of one-day events for “Focus the Nation.”

 The purpose was to educate participants on global warming solutions.

One particular event hosted by the University of Vermont was “Climatological Perspectives on Climate Change” featuring PhD. Lesley –

Ann Giroux and Professor Shelly Rayback of University of Vermont.

The climate changes all the time, but it’s the rate and magnitude at which its’ happening that should be cause for concern.  “We are becoming a major component in terms of climate change.”

said Rayback.  

Since the Industrial Revolution there has been a 1/3 percent increase in the airs c02 concentration.  That rate of increase is faster than anytime in the last 20,000 years, Rayback said.              

Climate varies tremendously and these natural fluctuations make it difficult to distinguish long-term trends, Giroux explained.  Scientists are using natural data sets such as tree rings and ice cores, which are physical recordings of the earths past climate trends.

“We can figure out a fat ring meant warmer temperatures and a thin ring meant cooler temperatures.”

Said Rayback in reference to tree rings.  Natural data sets allow scientists to study climate patterns over a long period of time.

These natural data sets are allowing scientists to put climate change into perspective.  They can study the climate from 1,000 years ago and compare the drastic change in the temperature of earth today.

When asked if the event changed his views on global warming, Jon Gilman, a University of Vermont sophomore said, “I guess it convinced me, but at the same time I found out humans weren’t the sole cause.”