a forum for the discussion of issues concerning the natural environment
(14) (1) (2) (6) (116) (10) (3) (1) (15) (2) (1936) (1) (2) (5) (7) (4) (9) (104) (9) (483) (1) (4) (15) (3) (1) (8) (1) (1)Scientist Steve Schneider Flips Fears
On the TV show In Search Of…The Coming Ice Age, Steven Schneider wonders whether mankind should intervene in staving off a coming ice age. Watch the old footage on YouTube here. (24)
Australian Liberals Oppose Carbon Trading
Australian Opposition Leader (Malcolm Turnbull) will be forced to stare down more than two-thirds of the Liberal back bench if he proceeds with his plan to negotiate with the government over amendments to the emissions trading scheme before December’s Copenhagen climate change conference. Read more here. (2)
Not Evil Just Wrong
Buy the DVD by clicking on the flashing icon above. (1)
Climate Change Summit in New York
In New York… Chinese leader Hu Jintao … U.S. President Barack Obama more or less shuffled climate control policy off into the great dreamscape of unattainable plans and long range objectives. Like equality for all and peace in our time … Terence Corcoran, Financial Post (1)
Minerals Industry Now Complaining
THE [Australian] minerals industry has demanded [the Prime Minister] Kevin Rudd overhaul his proposed emissions trading system or risk smashing Australian jobs and the nation’s industrial competitiveness. Read more here. (1)
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Posted by Charlotte Ramotswe, January 7th, 2009 - under News, Opinion.
Tags: Climate & Climate Change
THE warmaholics are fond of using the phrase “official records going back to 1850″, but the simple facts are that prior to the 1970s, surface-based temperatures from a few indiscriminate, mostly backyard locations in Europe and the US are fatally corrupted and not in any sense a real record. Read more here.
Hi Jennifer: Happy New Year.
The other day I purchased three low-cost thermometers to measure temperature changes due to fireing up a wood stove in the basement of a cabin I built. Purely curiosity regarding heat flow, if any. I noticed that each thermometer showed a slightly different temperature when placed at the same location which is due to their low quality and not serious for my experiment. But this got me to wondering about surface station measurments. Are thermometers ever calibrated? (I don’t know how to do that either). Anthony Watts has performed a spectacular feat on placement issues. But there seems to me to be another potential source of error which I have never seen mentioned: quality and calibration of thermometers. Maybe it is trivial..I don’t know.
I would like to send this to Anthony but could not find his e-mail.
Regards
Jack Mosevich
jack mosevich…re email addy for Anthony Watts, try: info@surfacestations.org . His other site is http://www.surfacestations.org and that email addy links there.
While searching for Anthony’s email addy, I came across these ditties:
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2009/01/06/ncdc-updates-database-for-dec08-ncdcs-own-graphic-shows-10-year-cooling-trend/
The NCDC (US National Centre for Climate Data) and this article claims via crosspatch, a contributor, that:
“NCDC now has December 2008 in the database. Annual North American temperature since 1998 (11 years of data) is falling over the period at a rate of 0.78(F)/decade or 7.8(F) per century. At this rate we will be in an ice age within 5 decades. If you can get the graphic, the heavy black like is the average over the century 1901 to 2000″.
http://www.norcalblogs.com/watts/2007/06/noaa_throws_a_roadblock_my_way.html
Watts complains about interference from NOAA/NSDC. The website from which he extracts information about surface stations has been closed, right after a radio interview with Dr. Thomas Peterson of NCDC.
re Jack Mosevich
Information on what is done in Australia can be found here:
http://www.bom.gov.au/inside/services_policy/pub_ag/aws/aws.shtml
On this page are links to the people who maintain this equipment so you could send them an email over any specific queries.
(In summary, yes the thermometers are routinely calibrated just like any other measuring system used in industry.)