Some global warming activists argue global warming may disrupt the hydrosphere, comprising all of the water on Earth and in its atmosphere. This disruption, they argue, will cause erratic rainfall and weather patterns and a dangerous increase in sea level.
A report from the Nongovernmental International Panel on Climate Change (NIPCC), an independent group of some 50 scientists from 15 countries, titled Climate Change Reconsidered II: Physical Science (CCR-II), summarizes a large body of research disputing these claims and finds the hydrosphere has exhibited only mild volatility over the past century in concert with natural climate cycles and with no correlation to human carbon dioxide emissions.
No Increase in Monsoon Intensity
The data show short-term precipitation volatility is not correlated with either carbon dioxide emissions or general climate warming. For example, monsoon intensity displayed no increase later in the century despite increased carbon dioxide emissions, but instead was correlated with solar activity.
In addition, monsoons were generally more intense during the Little Ice Age than the Medieval Warm Period, which runs directly contrary to the claims of global warming activists. On the other end of the volatility spectrum, the peer-reviewed studies cited in CCR-II dispute the strength of the commonly cited connection between global warming and droughts, as evidenced by the similar rates of drought occurrence in the cold Little Ice Age and the warm Medieval Warm Period.
Minimal Impact on Sea Level
As with precipitation, CCR-II finds no significant connection between sea level or ocean temperature and human carbon dioxide emissions. Sea level is determined by a multitude of factors, and carbon dioxide-induced global warming is a minor one. Ocean temperatures have remained virtually unchanged for nine years, according to data provided by the Argo buoy network.
Concern over human greenhouse gas emissions has been the impetus for many economically destructive public policies, including renewable power mandates, alternative energy mandates and subsidies, and high gasoline taxes. Yet, despite ever-increasing levels of carbon dioxide emissions, scientists have been unable to demonstrate a connection to its alleged effects, such as hydrosphere alteration, over the previous century. CCR-II‘s findings demonstrate precipitation and ocean activity have little to no connection to human carbon dioxide emissions. This suggests energy production, the lifeblood of the global economy, should not be hindered by state intervention to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
More detailed summaries of the science, along with links to supporting data and peer-reviewed studies, are included in Climate Change Reconsidered II: Physical Science.
Internet Info:
“Observations: The Hydrosphere and Oceans,” Climate Change Reconsidered II: Physical Science, http://heartland.org/media-library/pdfs/CCR-II/Chapter-6-Hydrosphere-Oceans.pdf
