Hey Global Warming – 1 Degree? That’s All You got??

Reader Contribution by Michael Kelberer
article image

On the one hand the public has been listening to dire predictions about the effects of Global Warming, but on the other hand the public is also aware that we’ve only been able to muster about one little degree Celsius of actual warming since the industrial revolution. And when scientists talk about future warming, they’re talking “OMG let’s not get above two degrees!” No wonder over half the people in the United States don’t think Global Warming is a serious issue, and the number of skeptics has actually been on the rise for the last five years (Gallop Poll, March 2010).

I get that. One little degree doesn’t sound like much – and in the context of day-to-day weather, it’s not. What we can and should be getting excited about (and talking about) is what’s behind that one-degree rise: heat energy, and lots of it. It’s not just the temperature in Minneapolis that’s up a degree today. It’s that the temperature of the entire planet is up one degree.

Let’s look at two analogies:

Online Store Logo
Need Help? Call 1-800-234-3368