6) GLACIERS AND GLOBAL WARMING
Global warming is the increase in the average temperature of the Earth’s near-surface air and oceans since the mid-20th century and its projected continuation.
Global surface temperature increased 1.33ºF (+/- 0.32 °F) between 1905 and 2005 and is projected to rise 1.8ºF to 2.7ºF by 2050. (Since global temperature recording began in 1850, the ten hottest years on record, in order from hottest to less hot, have been: 2005, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2006, 2004, 2001, 1997 and 1995.) The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concludes that most of the temperature increase since the mid-20th century is “very likely” due to the increase in anthropogenic (meaning manmade) greenhouse gas concentrations. Natural phenomena such as solar variation and volcanoes probably had a small warming effect from pre-industrial times to 1950 and a small cooling effect from 1950 onward. These basic conclusions have been endorsed by at least 30 scientific societies and academies of science, including all of the national academies of science of the major industrialized countries.
Reports on climate change can be found at:
http://ipcc-wg1.ucar.edu/wg1/Report/AR4WG1_Print_SPM.pdf
http://ipcc-wg1.ucar.edu/wg1/Report/AR4WG1_Print_Ch09.pdf
The terms “global warming” and “climate change” are often used interchangeably.
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