THERE is a theory that the earth’s climate is influenced by cosmic rays that penetrate our atmosphere from outer space. In particular it is thought cosmic rays influence the production of cloud condensation nuclei with periods of higher cosmic rays penetration associated with more cloudiness. The power of what is known as the solar wind, the magnetic force associated with the sun, is thought to influence the extent to which these high-energy charged particles composed of protons, electrons, and ionized nuclei reach earth.
The theory has been based to a large extent on correlations between climate and sunspot cycles. There is now a research effort to establish a physically-plausible link between cosmic rays, clouds and climate including through laboratory experiments in clouding at the Cern Cloud Facility in, Geneva, Switzerland. The theory and the experiments are explained in ‘Cosmic Rays and Climate’ by Jasper Kirkby, Surveys in Geophysics, Volume 28, pages 333-375.
I know of no equivalent research effort looking at establishing a causal link between carbon dioxide and climate.
This paper by Dr Kirby was first discussed here in a blog post by Paul Biggs on May 21 this year. I’ve only just properly discovered it – and thought it so good you should read about it a second time. I posted ‘Cosmic Rays, Clouds and Climate (Part 1)’ on April 13, 2008.
RW,
Supply evidence to support your point here, ie Tyndall's work. Arhhenius proposed his hypothesis in 1906 so your ignorance might be the more staggering.
It has not been established at all as an empirical fact. - your ignorance is staggering. Tyndall did that in 1859.
What exactly do you hope to achieve by preposterously claiming that 150 years of research just never happened? Do you and Ms Marohasy genuinely believe that the notion of infrared absorption being a key factor in the energy balance of the atmosphere just came from nowhere?
Thanks for posting that most interesting paper by Kirkby.
If C14 and Be10 really are good proxies for GCR, then temperatures over the past millenium
correlate at least as well with GCR as anything else.
Establishing that higher GCR actually does create more clouds, would make it a very valid alternative to CO2/GHG. As far as I know CO2/GHG is only invoked to explain recent warming, but clearly temps (and other climate variables) have been just as volatile over periods where CO2 was relatively stable.
RW: "You want to know about a current research effort, to establish a link between CO2 and climate? You won’t find that, because it’s already established."
It has not been established at all as an empirical fact.
It is essentially the verification of Arhennius' 1906 hypothesis that decreasing atmospheric CO2 causes ice ages, which if inverted, means that increasing atmospheric CO2 causes warming. Arhennius never proved it and demanded others disprove him.
However everyone seems to agree that it has been established, just like plate-tectonics is agreed to be a fact or that the big bang is a fact - big difference. Consensus about a scientific hypothesis is called pseudoscience.
But the pseudoscientists are in charge now and there is little anyone can do until the inherent flaws of the theories become manifest and we enter another period of enlightenment.
Jennifer - my link is to a history of decades of research into the relationship between CO2 and climate. You want to know about a current research effort, to establish a link between CO2 and climate? You won't find that, because it's already established. Reinventing the wheel is a waste of time. The basic physics was worked out many decades ago. If you don't believe the physics, that is one thing, but to deny that any research has ever taken place is just bizarre.
RW; a link to Spencer Weart; how quaint, how amusing, how droll; oh, you're serious; how tragic.
Rossko,
These are well known phenomena in the Plasma Universe area of study. The 'magnetic portals' are Birkeland currents and have magntitudes of millions of amperes.
The sad thing is that NASA seems to think these things are novel, but if the communicated with the plasma engineers at Los Alamos Labs, they might get up to speed on this.
More information at //public.lanl.gov/alp/plasma/TheUniverse.html
RW,
Your link is to history.
What about a current research effort beyond computer modelling?
I know of no equivalent research effort looking at establishing a causal link between carbon dioxide and climate. - then I am truly appalled by your ignorance. Start doing some learning here
Jen
Perhaps this is way off the mark, but have a look at this recent note from NASA on 'Magnetic Portals Connect Sun and Earth'
http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2008/30oct_ftes.htm?list1001590
Maybe this mechanism is part of the story?