Climate Change, the big picture!

Update 06/April/2022

(Global) Climate Change & Global Warming.

We should all be concerned about Global warming but maybe not so much with “climate change”. The MSM (Main Stream Media) are making a meal of it and there is a lot of misinformation and scaremongering doing the rounds.

One thing for certain is that the “public” are being deceived and the Climate Change & Global Warming “facts” appear to be a competition between “experts” to see who can p*ss up the wall the highest. Check out Dr Roy Spencer and skepticalscience and heartland.org. They can’t all be right! Trawl the web and you’ll find a lot more conflicting information and this makes it difficult to decide on who to put your money on! As an Engineer, I’ve spent all of my adult life using logic and reasoning and have advocated Science as something that we should look to instead of “belief” but the current disagreements amongst “experts” is making a mockery of Science. Science uses facts and doesn’t care what you believe. Science uses facts not opinions but it seems that Science has been hi jacked to suit some agenda and facts are very cleverly intermingled with opinions. I’ve tried very hard to make sense of it all and have relied on facts like “core samples”, things that you can touch and feel and know that it’s real. If you’re trying to make sense of this “Global Warming” and “Climate Change” thing, read on. You will either conclude that I’m an Idiot or a genius but I’m neither. I’m also not a farmer but can smell BS for miles. I’ve tried to make sense of things by observing things that not disputed.

FACT. Climate Change is nothing new, neither is global warming or global cooling! The climate has been changing for over 2 BILLION years! I struggle to imagine a thousand years and a million years is off the scale, a Billion years is like forever!

Note, The modern day definition of a Billion is “1 thousand million – 1,000,000,000“.

Note. The Earth is considered to have had an “Atmosphere” when it contained Oxygen and this seems to have been about 2 – 2.5 Billion years ago but the “experts” don’t all agree!

The Earth was apparently “formed” about 4 BILLION years ago and has apparently experienced many Tropical climates and Ice ages, which appear to be cyclic and well before humans started to inhabit the Earth. With regards to “Humans” inhabiting the Earth, it seems we could have been inhabiting the Earth 1.5 – 2 million years ago! Check out “Human Evolution“. Humans have evolved a lot so early humans will not have been the same as modern day humans.

We are currently coming out of an “Ice Age” and the (current”) “Global Warming” started some 1+ Million years ago. The melting of the ice / Glaciers (which apparently covered most of the land masses and oceans) is apparently responsible for shaping our landscapes. Permafrost apparently still covered most of Europe 10,000 years ago.

The “current” ice age apparently started after the Mesozoic Era – some 65 / 66 MILLION years ago and it is suggested (by Scientists) that this was the cause of the “disappearance” of Dinosaurs. I’m not aware of any disagreements with this.There are few theories about the cause of the “Ice age”, one of the popular ones is that a meteor impacted on the Earth and created a “dust cloud” which blocked the heat from the Sun! This is very plausible but IMO, won’t be the full story.

With regards to “Human Evolution”. If Humans were around 1.5 to 2 MILLION years ago, most of the Earth was (apparently) covered in ice. It isn’t clear how Humans “evolved” or even survived in this “Glacial period”. If humans were around 1+ MILLION years ago, they would be adept with living in cold / ice bound conditions and this would suggest that they did not survive on a diet of “vegetables” and were very probably “cave dwellers” who survived by eating meat and whatever vegetation and “seeds” they could find. It is possible that during this period, some parts of the Earth were not “Ice Bound” and humans just happened to “evolve” in the warmer locations. We have evidence of human existence 10,000 years ago (in the UK) see “Cheddar man” (most of “Europe” was at this time still covered in permafrost) and there is other evidence to suggest human existence 30,000 years ago (see caves Mi Kong Delta Vietnam and Malaysia.) There is also evidence (in France) that humans (of sorts) were around some 20,000 + years ago.

“Global warming” is apparently happening quicker than the “experts” projected! Maybe they got it wrong! To be fair there aren’t many (if any) records to go on – other than “Core samples”. “Core Samples” enable “Geologists” to study strata but it appears that “climatologists” can also use this data by looking at the thickness of the ice at the poles and maybe other things. With regards to “Climate”, Weather and “Global Warming”, we don’t really have any “experts” on climate before records began but we do have some very clever and talented people that have studied climate since “records began” (around 130 years ago). We apparently have (some) records that suggest that during the “Roman Empire” (2000 years ago), the “climate” was apparently about 2 deg C higher than it is today. This may not be factual because the data doesn’t include data for the “whole world”. In the main there is a lot of “educated” guessing going on and this may be more opinion based and not factual! Every day is a “school day”, we are in “learning mode” about this wonderful planet we call Earth. The Earth has many yet to be discovered “secrets” and in many cases the experts got it wrong because of “blinkered vision” and / or “agenda thinking”.

One thing that appears to be factual and not contested is that the Earth started warming and coming out of an Ice Age some 1.2 Million years ago and it can be taken that Humans and their activities were not the cause (If Humans were around). However, Greenhouse gases could be responsible for the onset of Global Warming (which started 1.2 Million years ago). If Greenhouse gases are responsible for Global Warming, this would suggest that there were no (significant) Greenhouse Gases during the past Ice Ages! During past Ice Ages, there would have be been little vegetation to lock up the CO2 but volcanic activity would likely have still occurred, along with earthquakes.

NOTE, the “Thermometer” was invented some 400 years ago (mid 1500’s) it isn’t clear how we know that the “climate” was apparently about 2 deg C higher than it is today, during the “Roman Empire”. Maybe the Romans invented the thermometer but didn’t get any recognition for it 🙂

Rising sea levels (as a result of the melting of the icecaps) is perhaps the biggest concern because a lot of people will be affected by this. Most of us, to a greater or lesser degree, will be affected by global warming and rising sea levels so we need to educate ourselves and plan ahead for the anticipated changes. Our future generations need to adapt to survive! It would appear that our “ancestors” learnt how to survive Glacial periods so we and our future generations need to learn how to survive a tropical period. ICELAND (the Country) is a good indicator of how the “Global Warming” is progressing. We are coming out of an Ice age and “polar” regions are the last regions to be affected. If sea levels are going to rise, then we need to start living on ground that is above the likely new sea level, that’s a bit of a “no brainer” 🙂 We might need to find alternative solutions for growing crops, there is a lot to prepare for!

Climate change is constant and global warming is very real but we need some perspective, we need to look at the “big picture” and stick to FACTS. We need to trounce the agendas of those that are trying to profit by spreading “misinformation”.

Volcanoes, Earthquakes and the movement of the “Tectonic Plates” are constantly shaping our landscape and quite probably our climate! Humans cannot control the cyclic global warming and global cooling and they certainly can’t control Volcanoes, Earthquakes and the movement of the Tectonic plates. If Humans are to survive these changes, we need to adapt to our changing environment and try to live in harmony with “nature”.

If the “Climate change” protesters read this, they will go into melt down but facts versus BS is always a problem!

SUMMARY (as I see it! I’m sure there will be many that disagree)

With regards to “Global warming”. We are coming out of an “Ice age” and this started well before humans were causing atmospheric pollution. The Earth will continue to warm until we are out of the (current) Ice age.
With regards to “Climate”. We have 4 seasons (Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter) but these are often reduced to “Summer” & “Winter”. Check out Equinox and solstice. The “seasons” tend to “Control” the activities of plants and animals. Spring is when new plant life starts and / or re awakens. Animals come out of hibernation and both the plant world and animal world start to reproduce. This is the natural rhythm of our beautiful planet. So the “Climate” is constantly changing and this is unlikely to change but it might be different due to global warming.
It is very unlikely that we can do much (if anything) to stop the (cyclic) “Global Warming and Cooling” because human activity didn’t bring about the “melting of the glaciers” which started over 1 MILLION years ago. Human activity was not responsible for the past Ice Ages. Human activity is not responsible for the current Global Warming.
We can’t really do much (if anything) to alter the “seasons” but the “seasons” may be affected by “Global Warming”. Our “Weather” is, to some extent, controlled by things like the “Jet Stream” and the “Gulf Stream”. Global warming will very likely have some major effects on these. The melting of the icecaps is likely to affect the “Gulf Stream” by adding cooler water but this is currently just a theory. It is certainly a theory that is worth keeping in mind! However, cooling of the Gulf stream would “potentially” have a cooling effect and would not be a contributor to “Global Warming”!
It is possible that human activity over the past 200 years has put “Global Warming” into overdrive but that is looking like a bit of a Non sequitur. “Global Warming” started over 1 MILLION years ago, a very long time before humans started polluting the atmosphere.
“Global warming” is not the result of human activities but our activities over the past 200 years ago may be contributing to it. This, as yet, has not really been ratified and its likely that human created (air) pollution has little effect on the climate!
We need to “adapt” to the changes that are being created by the (Natural) “Global warming”.
Volcanoes, the movement of the tectonic plates and Earthquakes are part of the Earths “maintenance” and cannot be controlled by humans.
Humans are just parasites that have “adopted” the Earth as a home. We rob the planet of its resources and don’t give anything back.
Apparently, “Greenhouse gases” (GHG) are a natural feature and help regulate the Earths temperature; without them, the Earth would apparently be much cooler, hold that thought! Did GHGs still exist in past ice ages?
It appears that the Earths “Eco System” is “fragile” and an excess of “Human created Greenhouse Gases” is the cause of Global Warming (according to David Attenborough). The Earth has survived for some 4 BILLION years so the fragility of the “Eco system” may be erroneous! It is very likely that the Earths Eco system is very robust but maybe not for human purposes!
During “Ice age” periods it would appear that the “Greenhouse Gases” were not being produced in sufficient quantities to cause “Global Warming” and humans weren’t around to affect this!
So far, we haven’t touched on the Heat (or lack off) from the Sun! The Sun was there before the Earth and was there during past “Ice Ages” (and tropical periods). Maybe during past “Ice Ages”, the Earth was further away from the Sun or something was blocking the heat from the Sun e.g. dust clouds. Humans were not around during these cyclic global warming and cooling periods.
All things considered, Global Warming and Global Cooling are not the result of Human activities. If humans are to survive, they need to adapt to the natural cyclic “Climate Changes”. We need to look at the “big picture” and not allow “profiteers” to benefit.
The Earth has had several “Tropical” and “Ice ages” over the past 4+ BILLION years and these appear to cyclic. Humans were not around and Human activities were not responsible for these (natural) cyclic events.
The current “Global Warming” is being blamed on an increase in (human created) CO2 but it is currently a lot less than 0.5% of the atmosphere. During the Dinosaur (tropical) era, the CO2 level was apparently in the region of 20% (might be guess work). During this period, the Earth was apparently covered with “vegetation” (Trees, Forests etc) and the seas were full of algae so it would seem that “vegetation” locking up the CO2 is basically a load of bollux !
FACT. Vegetation produces Oxygen during daylight but produces CO2 at night! (generally).
If “Greenhouse Gases” are a natural occurrence and don’t escape the Earths atmosphere. This would suggest that these gases would not be reduced if humans stopped producing them so the best we could get is a status quo unless by magic, the gases would then be “absorbed” into ????? it wouldn’t apparently be trees and vegetation!
It is looking like the “Climate Change protests” are “Profit led” but by whom? “Alternative Energy Companies” ?
Maybe the “Climate Change protesters” are just a bunch of nutters that have (mis) used science and have very cleverly managed to intertwine science with BS in a sort of “Chicken Liken” style (Think Millennium Bug) but why? What do they have to gain?
“Carbon foot print” is basically an invented expression to play on the emotions of humans but it doesn’t really have any factual basis. The Earth started to warm up (in the current ice age) 1+ Million years ago and humans were not around causing atmospheric pollution.
We need to stop creating (human) pollution but this would be mainly beneficial to humans, plants and animals.
Plastic pollution is probably our main concern. Plastic is fantastic and without it human lives would be more difficult (maybe) but we need to make sure that it is recycled and / or disposed of without causing damage to the environment.
Burning “fossil fuels” (including Oil, Gas and Peat) causes atmospheric pollution, we either need to find ways to burn it without causing pollution or we need to stop burning it. That said, the main benefit of not polluting the atmosphere would be to Humans, animals and plants.
A benefit of “Global Warming” is the reduction in the need for humans to burn “fossil fuels” to keep warm 🙂
We need to cross the “Nuclear Threshold” (nothing to do with Nuclear weapons) and embrace Nuclear power. We need to let our Engineers and Scientists make Nuclear Power safe and none polluting so that we have no need to burn fossil fuels to keep warm or provide us with the energy that our modern world needs. The modern electronic world is power (energy) hungry and we need to find ways to provide this energy. Nuclear power has the potential to provide all the power (energy) that we need, without having the “eyesore” Wind and Solar panel farms. However Nuclear Power relies on Uranium and this is a “Mined Ore” which will eventually depleted.
Advances in “Solar Power” are doing a good job of providing energy, as is “Wind, Wave and even Hydro-electric Power”. With regards to Solar Panels, they are becoming more “efficient” and “cost effective”. We should all have Solar Panels on our roofs, Roads and Drives (parking spaces) to help provide the energy that humans need. However, the use of solar panels needs to use “Silicon” / “Silica”, which is currently considered to be sustainable but to make use of “Solar Panels” we need to make use of a “Storage facility” and this is usually in the form of “Lithium” (a Mined Ore) which will eventually deplete and still involves raping the planet of its resources.
The Earth is coming out of an ICE AGE, it is going to get warmer and this a natural cyclic event, that has happened several times over the BILLIONS of years. Humans are (in the main) awesome, we are Engineers, Scientists, Toolmakers but we cannot control the universal changes that have been happening for BILLIONS of years. We need to adapt and work / live with nature.
The Earth is just one of many planets that orbit the Sun and all the planets are under the control of gravity and many other things that we perhaps don’t yet fully understand. The Earth is just a small part of our Universe, our orbit around the Sun is not constant. The “axis” of the Earth changes, magnetic North changes. Our land masses change due to movement of the Tectonic plates and Earthquakes. Airborne pollution changes with activities of Volcanoes so we have a situation where everything is in “flux” i.e. it’s “all change” and is generally nothing that can be controlled by humans!
In a nutshell If you subscribe to the “Greenhouse Gases ideas”, you would need to accept that these gases don’t escape the atmosphere and build up over time. Ultimately the build up of these gases result in Global Warming. In turn you would have to accept that natural features like Volcanoes are responsible for the increase in CO2 (acknowledged by David Attenborough, he goes further to suggest that volcanoes are responsible for “carbon based life forms” e.g. Humans. Volcanoes produce a lot of hot gases (like some celebrities) and atmospheric pollution and these apparently don’t escape the atmosphere. Methane (CH4) is also a naturally produced gas and this also appears to build-up in the atmosphere and cause Global Warming. Attenborough goes on to suggest that “Human created” GHGs (specifically CO2) are responsible for the increase in Global Warming! He doesn’t offer any suggestions as to what caused the onset of Global Warming 1+ Million years ago but it can be taken that it wasn’t “human created” gases!
What about past ice ages, would this be because the GHGs were absent or not sufficient to keep the earth warm? It is likely that volcanoes were still active during ice ages. The movement of the tectonic plates would also have been occurring and earthquakes would have certainly been in action.
The “current” Ice Age apparently started some 65 / 66 Million years ago and (most of) the Earth was apparently covered in ice (Glaciers). It would be fair to anticipate that “vegetation” in this period would have been very sparse and would not have any effect on the CO2 or CH4 levels so if Global Warming is the result of an increase in “Green house Gases”, the “Green House Gases” must have come from “natural” events like Volcanoes! Humans have apparently caused atmospheric pollution in high quantities over the past 200 years or so (with regard to CO2 and CH4) but the “current” Global Warming (which started some 1.2 MILLION years ago) was not a result of “human pollution” but may have been the result of a build up of natural “green house gases”.
According to the “climate” experts, we are still coming out of an “Ice age” so the Global Warming” will continue until we get to the end of the “Ice Age”. It isn’t clear when the “current Ice Age” is no longer an “Ice Age” or when “Global Cooling” will start again but until we have a definitive answer to “What caused the Earth to start warming over 1 Million years ago“, we are basically guessing. We don’t really have any “reliable / factual” records to look at but we can be sure that human created greenhouse gases were not the cause of the current Global Warming some 1.2 Million years ago. It is very possible that human created CO2 and / or CH4 are not helping. It is also possible that as the Earth gets warmer, the warming action increases on a sort of “logarithmic scale”, e.g. it isn’t constant / Linear. It could even have periods of cooling and warming but overall it is currently warming.
In conclusion. The Earth has been around for some 4 BILLION years and has looked after itself quite well. Our SUN was apparently formed some half a Billion years before the Earth. Humans are “guests” of this wonderful planet and we need to respect this fabulous world. We need to stop raping it of its resources and make sure our “co-existence” has a “neutral” effect. Humans cannot control the “natural” cyclic “climate changes” but we need to make sure that we don’t have a negative effect on the “natural climate”. Air pollution is just one aspect but we need to look at the “big picture”. Creating huge craters by opencast mining and creating huge underground caverns by extracting ore, oil, gas and creating huge expanses of “lakes” all need to be factored into the equation. But the Earth started warming over 1.2 MILLION years ago before any of these “Human” activities started.It would seem that “Global Warming” and “Global Cooling” are cyclic and are controlled by activities of the “Universe”. Humans are mere “microbes” in the grand scheme of things and this doesn’t sit well because we are Engineers, Scientists and Toolmakers, we like to be in control but realistically we cannot control “nature” or the “Universe”. We need to adapt to the changing world and respect this wonderful planet. We need to accept that we are unable to control the “Universe”. We need to accept that the Earth along with its “climate” is constantly changing. Volcanoes, Earthquakes and the movement of the Tectonic plates are constantly changing the Earths “landscape” and quite probably the “Climate”. The Earths orbit around the Sun is not constant, it changes (sometimes the Earth is nearer the Sun). The Earths axis “tilt” changes, Magnetic North changes. The Earth is basically a giant Kebab that rotates and orbits a heat source!
The Suns orbit around the Milky Way is not constant but apparently takes about 230 MILLION years. “Time” is a factor, Natural rhythm of the Universe is a factor. In the “Grand Scheme” of “things”, human activity and human created “greenhouse gases” are probably negligible with regard to “Global Warming” but as guests of this wonderful planet, we should be doing everything possible to make sure our activities have a neutral effect on the natural events and we should be making sure that our activities are “planet friendly”. The “Green House Gas” thing is a bit of a conundrum or maybe its a load of BS! If these gases don’t escape the atmosphere and build up to cause Global Warming, then making “arrangements” to stop humans creating “Green House Gases” won’t make the build up of gases disappear. It would appear that “vegetation” does not “lock up” CO2 or CH4 so the “de-forestation ideas” are questionable! It would seem that the whole Global Warming thing is not something that humans can control.
The increase in human population (from 2? to several Billion) could be having some effect on “Global Warming”. It could be accelerating the natural (cyclic) Global Warming. The human body produces heat, it also needs energy to keep it warm. The human body produces “waste” which produces CH4 (Methane). Humans eat cows in significant numbers and cows produce Methane in copious amounts and Methane (CH4) is a “greenhouse gas”.
In the main,it would appear that humans and their activities have little or no effect on the “cosmic influences”. Volcanoes, Earthquakes, the movement of the Tectonic plates and the orbit of the Sun (along with other things) will always be a prime factor. Global warming and Global Cooling has occurred many times over the Billions of years and Climate Change is constant and isn’t anything new, it has been changing well before humans were around. Humans or their activities did not start the Global Warming 1+ million years ago.
Global Warming is very real, it’s been happening (currently) for 1+ million years, you should be concerned but there is little that you can do to stop it. You and your offspring and future generations will need to adapt to the changes. Rising sea levels are probably the main concern, the obvious thing to do would be to re-locate to “higher ground” and hope that the movement of the Tectonic plates doesn’t cause your higher ground to become lower. If you still think that the “Current” Global Warming is due to “Human Created Activities”, you probably need to look at the “Big Picture”! Global Warming started 1+ MILLION years ago when humans were not around or were not around in significant numbers to cause an increase in “Greenhouse Gases”.
Does this mean we should do nothing, should we continue to pollute the atmosphere and continue raping the planet of its resources? It is very likely that human pollution (GHGs) is not helping with regard to Global Warming, if GHG are responsible for Global Warming! Human pollution does need to be addressed, even if it’s only to benefit humans, animals and plant life.
We need to accept that Global Warming (and Global Cooling) cannot be controlled by humans to any great degree and we need to adapt to the changes and try to live in harmony with this wonderful planet. The Earth has looked after itself for BILLIONS of years, we just need to make sure that human existence doesn’t cause additional problems for the planet as it evolves and maintains its place in the “Cosmos”.
We still need to be mindful that the current Global Warming started 1+ Million years ago and human pollution of any kind would have been negligible, if we (humans) had been around then!
We need to be mindful that there are some people that have “hidden agendas” and they use “Sleight of hand” to weave BS into facts to make nonsense sound plausible.
We need to be mindful that the “big picture” is mostly ignored because we can’t see it, we are bogged down by the “agendas” of those with the loudest voices and of course we have the MSM (main stream media) spreading BS so that they can profit.
It is likely that the GHGs thing is a hoax (like the hole in the Ozone layer and the Millennium bug) that is based on factual evidence but it is taken out of proportion and “twisted” to suit some agendas. Other factors may have more merit, with regard to Global Warming. We need a definitive answer to “What caused the onset of Global Warming 1+ MILLION years ago”. It wasn’t Human created GHGs!
This wonderful Earth was not created for the benefit of humans, some 4 BILLION years ago. Humans are at the best “Guests” of this wonderful planet but in the main we are “parasites”, that have inhabited the Earth for a few thousand years (maybe longer). Humans have no “right” to interfere with the cyclic Global Warming or Global Cooling of the planet. This wonderful planet is home to animals and plant life, that may or may not be beneficial to humans. Animals. Plants and Humans all need to survive on this wonderful planet. In the grand scheme (big Picture) humans are basically parasites but in the “pecking order” we come out at the top because we are tool makers, engineers and scientists. We can make tools to topple the most ferocious of animals so that we can eat them to survive. However, plants and the animal kingdom tend to live in harmony with this wonderful planet, they don’t live in a parasitical manner. With regards to the animal kingdom, they are basically Amoral and not capable (afawk) of conscious thought.. With regards to “plants”, their sole aim is survival and again afawk they are not capable of conscious thought.
In the main, humans and animals have the same or similar “desires” to survive but humans have the ability of conscious thought, which should give us an advantage. Unfortunately this advantage is compromised by addled thinking or no thinking at all ! Plants and Animals that don’t adapt to the changing “environment”, become extinct! Humans that don’t adapt to the changing environment will become extinct.
Throw off your mental chains, remove your blinkers and look at the “Big Picture”. Global Warming (currently) started 1+ MILLION years ago and Humans were not around causing “atmospheric pollution” (GHGs). Our future generations need to plan ahead and adapt to the warming of the planet and the likely rising sea levels. We can’t control the activities of volcanoes or indeed the movement of the tectonic plates and we certainly can’t control the “cosmic” effects of being in an ever changing universe.
We need to Adapt to survive!
By all means, try to reduce the pollution that you are making and try to live in harmony with this wonderful planet but Global Warming cannot be controlled by humans and it will continue until it completes its cycle.
Climate change is constant and Global Warming is very real. I don’t have the answers, I only have questions. It seems we have a lot of “self proclaimed experts” that are basically peddlers of bullshit that seem happy to ignore the big picture. In addition we have the “brain dead” protesters, who at best can be seen as “knuckle draggers” that are easily coerced. We also have a few “celebrities” who “jet” around the world and “protest” about CO2 and other emissions, own goal or what doh!
Hopefully I have given you food for thought and you will also ask “awkward” questions of the “Experts” and will hopefully discover “what caused the onset of the Global Warming 1 + million years ago”. We absolutely know it wasn’t human created GHGs!