Scientists Slap Down Australian Senator Who Denies AGW Because Of Solar Flare Theory

[hatrack]

SCIENTISTS have criticised the Family First Senator, Steve Fielding, for promoting "misinformation" that the sun could be to blame for recent global warming.

David Karoly, a climate change expert at the University of Melbourne, said Senator Fielding was also wrong to argue that debate about the influence of the sun on recent rises in global temperature had been stifled. Independent teams of scientists had been assessing the evidence for many years, Professor Karoly said. "There has been a rigorous debate."

EDIT

Paul Cally, professor of solar physics at Monash University, said a gradual increase in solar activity during the first half of last century might have contributed up to 30 per cent of global warming.

"But it was totally swamped by man-made effects late in the 20th century," Professor Cally said. "It is very clear if you look at the data." He was concerned by misrepresentation of science because "it may cause us to do nothing when when we really need to be doing a lot".

The former chief of atmospheric research at the CSIRO, Graeme Pearman, said scepticism was healthy, but it was "silly" of Senator Fielding to think he had suddenly hit on an idea scientists had not thoroughly considered and dismissed. The conclusion that global warming was not due to natural causes, like solar flares, was the result of "25 years of research", Dr Pearman said.

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http://www.smh.com.au/environment/global-warming/tempers-flare-as-scientists-defend-solar-debate-20090608-c0wl.html

[Hugabear]

1. Anybody who denies man-made climate change needs to be ridiculed into obscurity

You don't see very many people still pushing the Flat Earth, Hollow Earth, or Expanding Earth "theories", and with good reason. They'd be ridiculed, laughed at, and be heaped upon with scorn. Likewise, anybody still pushing this nonsense that we aren't responsible for the climate change that is currently underway should be treated the same way.