Outspoken climate scientist gets props - January 15, 2009
Posted on behalf of Roberta Kwok
James Hansen isn’t shy about speaking up, and now the American Meteorological Society is rewarding him for it.
Hansen, a NASA climate scientist known best for his outspoken criticism of the Bush administration, received the 2009 Carl-Gustaf Rossby Research Medal yesterday, the highest award given by the AMS. The society commended him for his contributions to climate modeling but also his “clear communication” to the public.
“The debate about global change is often emotional and controversial, and Jim has had the courage to stand up and say what others did not want to hear,” said Franco Einaudi, director of the Earth Sciences Division at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland (NASA press release). “He has acquired a credibility that very few scientists have.”
Andrew Revkin notes on his Dot Earth blog that “some will say this was a decision made by a small committee of the organization’s leaders and doesn’t reflect the views of the A.M.S. membership”. Meteorologists have tended to be more skeptical about the danger of human influence on climate change, Revkin says, though an official 2007 AMS statement acknowledged human activities as a “major contributor”. At more than 14,000 members, the AMS is the largest organization of weather scientists and amateurs in the US.
This is hardly Hansen’s first honor. Already occupying his mantelpiece are awards from the American Geophysical Union and American Physical Society, as well as two US Presidential Rank Awards. A panel of 600 science advisors selected him as EarthSky Scientist Communicator of the Year last month.
Hansen’s work focuses on numerical models of global climate patterns. He has told several news outlets that the Bush administration attempted to silence his warnings about the dangers of climate change. Hansen directs the NASA Goddard Institute of Space Studies in New York.
Image: NASA
Comments
14 January 2009 Fargo, North Dakota hit -48 F. Mercury freezes ten degrees warmer. 20% of the US is in record-shattering cold.
http://sidc.oma.be/sunspot-index-graphics/sidc_graphics.php
The sun shows a prolonged sunspot minimum. Earth is chilling and the Green Revolution with it. 2009 crop failure will be an Official surprise.
Posted by: Uncle Al | January 15, 2009 06:16 PM
"Jim has had the courage to stand up and say what others did not want to hear"
On the contrary he has been saying what others eagerly want to hear. There are a chorus of hear hears and hallelujahs for those sort of statements. Moreover it requires absolutely no courage at all. Is he going to be crucified for barking with the mainstream? Not at all. In fact he will be hailed as a hero and put in line for honours and plaudits.
What people really don't want to hear is that we haven't a clue as to what the long-term future climate will be. To say anything with confidence is being deceptive and to state that man is causing global warming is being unscientific besides being conceited and egotistical in the extreme.
I raised some points in "Temperature rises threaten global food security" - no one answered or challenged them. Anyone who produces evidence against anthropogenic global warming is classified as a "climate denier" - the same class as a holocaust denier, but the arguments are not challenged.
Unfortunately you also have people like Uncle Al, who state with equal confidence that the world is cooling and the ice age is at hand.
Uncle Al sunspot minimums are not a new thing and occur with regularity. Though you are correct that they contribute to global cooling. For your information it has recently been found that the previous few minimums were all a little less (2% less) minimum than the previous ones, which could have accounted for the warming of the past 2-3 decades. It remains to be seen whether this trend will continue.
Posted by: Richard | January 17, 2009 03:59 AM