Interesting NOVA on TV last night, it dealt with global warming.
Synopsis is that pollution caused less sunlight to reach the earth from 1950-1990 because pollutants made clouds more reflective, by an average of 5%.
However, the trend is reversing over some areas (Europe, US) because we’re reducing visible pollutants. Now here’s the rub. Global dimming may have been saving us from global warming. Basically, the clouds have kept sunlight out, keeping us cooler. But, they may have also prevented the monsoons that usually occur in the Subhara, causing those nasty famines in Ethiopia in the 80s. So, global dimming was responsible for “We Are The World”. ‘Nuff said.
Interesting NOVA on TV last night, it dealt with global warming.
Synopsis is that pollution caused less sunlight to reach the earth from 1950-1990 because pollutants made clouds more reflective, by an average of 5%.
However, the trend is reversing over some areas (Europe, US) because we’re reducing visible pollutants. Now here’s the rub. Global dimming may have been saving us from global warming. Basically, the clouds have kept sunlight out, keeping us cooler. But, they may have also prevented the monsoons that usually occur in the Subhara, causing those nasty famines in Ethiopia in the 80s. So, global dimming was responsible for “We Are The World”. ‘Nuff said. If you’re downwind of major pollution areas (Mid-Atlantic US, northern Maltives, etc), then you’re more likely to be cooler because of that pollution.
And the thing is that America is reducing polltuion, as is Europe. The problem is developing countries like India, China, etc. They’re playing catch up in the industrial/economic sector and have no desire to put expensive pollution-reducing measures in place to save the environment. And who’s going to bully China into doing anything?
Another example of how we have very little clue as to how our environment works, from little to big scale. That being said, I’m pretty sure pollution is bad and needs to be reduced. C’mon hydrogen fuel cells.
My $.02 Weed
P.S. Matt: While I understand your “oil is free while hydrogen is not” point about hydrogren extraction, I still don’t buy into its ramifications totally. Yes, oil is already formed thanks to global pressures and such, but it still takes effort to extract it from its resting place. Not to mention shipping it and the political factors. I can take a short trip and find water, tho, as can 99% of the world. It can’t be THAT much more expensive to get hydrogen from water when water’s so abundant and close. Why can’t someone come up with a device that sits at my septic tank, takes THAT water, and gets the hydrogen out of it, powered by solar? What about rain barrels that feed into it? With the $80+ billion we wasted in Iraq plus a nice tax on oil companies profits (sorry, Daniel) we should be able to make that somewhat feasible and cost-effective. C’mon, America, can’t we get inventing???!)
