In light of the recent reports on arctic land ice, I thought it prudent to spend some time focused on one of the other critical crises contributing to the Great Decline: Global Warming.
My mom forwarded me a fantastic presentation on some of the latest Global Warming research as presented by a professor at Iowa State University. It contains quite a bit of observed local effects and predictions for Iowa and the Midwest-at-large. The presentation can be downloaded here (Warning: Large ppt file).
I think it’s important to remember that as dire as these predictions are, rarely do they publicize what happens when the negative temperature forcing effect of aerosols (see Global Dimming) disappears as industrial production winds down. True, economic degradation may easily help us meet our arbitrary CO2 reduction goals, but we will have no salvation from rapidly rising global temperatures. On the plus side, increased solar irradiance will increase the output from solar devices and possibly help crop yields, but then again that will overall be countered by accelerated temperature rise.
Just more to consider when planning your farmstead…
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Confused
Please explain the graph. Is that the degree of warming predicted for various regions of the country? So not much warming in the midwest?
Understandable
Yes, there is actually a global warming "hole" predicted for the midwest. Hard to say if the models are truly detailed enough accurately predict specific regional effects like that, but certainly a strange finding that reinforces on us the complexity of the climate system.