Difference between revisions of "Global warming/claims/self-correcting"
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| − | [[Category: | + | [[Category:claims]]A counterargument to claims of [[global warming]] is that the Earth's climate is self-correcting, and that any general warming (or cooling) trend will therefore soon be counteracted. This idea is consistent with the [[Gaia theory]]. |
==Response== | ==Response== | ||
While it is entirely possible that the climate may be self-correcting in the long run, there is also strong evidence that Earth has been significantly warmer or colder than at present for quite long stretches of time — apparently even freezing over completely on at least one occasion ([[wikipedia:Snowball Earth|Snowball Earth]]), remaining that way for over 200 million years (far longer than our species has existed) and only unfreezing when the accumulation of geothermally-released carbon dioxide in the atmosphere became sufficient to create a counteracting [[wikipedia:Greenhouse effect|greenhouse effect]]. | While it is entirely possible that the climate may be self-correcting in the long run, there is also strong evidence that Earth has been significantly warmer or colder than at present for quite long stretches of time — apparently even freezing over completely on at least one occasion ([[wikipedia:Snowball Earth|Snowball Earth]]), remaining that way for over 200 million years (far longer than our species has existed) and only unfreezing when the accumulation of geothermally-released carbon dioxide in the atmosphere became sufficient to create a counteracting [[wikipedia:Greenhouse effect|greenhouse effect]]. | ||
The self-correcting capability is not, therefore, something we should depend on when making plans for our civilization. | The self-correcting capability is not, therefore, something we should depend on when making plans for our civilization. | ||
Revision as of 23:20, 1 September 2006
Claim
A counterargument to claims of global warming is that the Earth's climate is self-correcting, and that any general warming (or cooling) trend will therefore soon be counteracted. This idea is consistent with the Gaia theory.
Response
While it is entirely possible that the climate may be self-correcting in the long run, there is also strong evidence that Earth has been significantly warmer or colder than at present for quite long stretches of time — apparently even freezing over completely on at least one occasion (Snowball Earth), remaining that way for over 200 million years (far longer than our species has existed) and only unfreezing when the accumulation of geothermally-released carbon dioxide in the atmosphere became sufficient to create a counteracting greenhouse effect.
The self-correcting capability is not, therefore, something we should depend on when making plans for our civilization.