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Rachel Maddow – Rhodes scholar; DPhil from Oxford, large microphone, faithful following…
I think climate hawks should lobby MSNBC to extend her nightly show an additional hour for exclusive science and climate news. I can’t imagine a more effective, trusted communicator already in place.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26315908/ns/msnbc_tv-rachel_maddow_show/ for her first show of coverage of the earthquake
I like that idea 350. Seems like most here have been waiting for PBS to do something but a daily one hour show dealing with science would be a great idea. I think the interest would be there. I don’t think the interest would hold if its only about climate change but all of science is under reported. I do believe it would fulfill a need.
Perception (currently 1st reddit.com entry)
http://i.imgur.com/aiOuT.jpg
Make yourself useful Say NO to the Koch http://imgur.com/HtmeF
http://www.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/g2d5m/say_no_to_the_koch/
Toxin found in sardines that clogged US marina
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110312/ap_on_re_us/us_fish_die_off
Possible link to toxic algae bloom.
Perhaps it now becomes topical that tsunamis may be a possible consequence of AGW, due to the high likelihood that release of the “methane clathrates” in the “East Siberian shelf” may lead to massive gas field failure, leading in turn to “shelf collapse”, which will cause Arctic tsunamis…
and is really quite likely to further lead to the atmospheric testing of the “clathrate gun hypothesis”, compared to which a major nuclear accident would be a very small, inconsequential event.
To understand this process, if you are unfamiliar with it, try Googling any of the terms within quotation marks.
Could there be a link between AGW and increased earthquakes?
I don’t know, myself, but basic physics seems to suggest that it’s possible. Perhaps other CP readers know more about this.
Increasing sea levels and shifting of mass from the poles toward the equator due to ice sheet melting and global warming may start to slow the rotation of the outer crust of the earth, due to conservation of angular momentum. But the core and mantle will want to maintain their current rotation rate, due to inertia.
This could set up stresses between the mantle and crust, triggering earthquakes, and releasing stored energy.
Additionally, as ice sheets melt, this will surely result in a local decrease of mass, and isostatic rebound, over the long term at least.
Will the two effects (slowing of the crust due to conservation of angular momentum, and isostatic rebound) be significant, and if so, what sort of time scales are we talking about here?
Here is a peer reviewed paper from Geophysical Research Letters, which speculates about a similar rotational disruption scenario following an asteroid impact, leading potentially to a geomagnetic reversal:
Muller/Morris>Geomagnetic Reversal From Impacts on the Earth
In the case of the Muller/Morris paper, they are talking about rotational disruption following a sudden ice age, causing a shift of mass toward the poles. With AGW, we would be talking about a shift of mass toward the equator, the opposite effect. Still, the effects of either should be very similar, and potentially catastrophic.
Do we have to worry about AGW triggered earthquakes, now?
Anybody know more about this?
Suppose the Pacific Ocean was expanding, something we already know is true.
The earth rotates from west to east. So, if the Pacific Ocean was trying to slow it’s rotation rate due to conservation of angular momentum, could that put compressive stresses on the western rim of the Pacific?
Dunno, seems possible.
AGW & EARTHQUAKES
The New Scientist article below (only a few paragraphs are on line without subscription) seem pretty confident that climate change will trigger earthquakes. My memory is (without subscription myself) that they are saying earthquakes would happen anyway but extremes in weather will trigger them early.
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20327273.800-climate-change-may-trigger-earthquakes-and-volcanoes.html
Leland,
As a scientist, I’ve long thought that global warming would intensify earthquake activity.
We know that earthquakes happen when Earth’s crust needs to relieve built up stress. We also know that most materials expand with warming, however slightly. Why wouldn’t global warming cause some expansion of plates on Earth’s crust, thus accelerating stress build up, and relief?
I predict that this new level of earthquake activity is going to continue as long as warming continues. Wecome to planet Eaarth!
Warm regards,
Roger
Since the first of this month, the US has set 1,694 new daily precep. records.
CHARLOTTEBURG RSVR [PASSAIC COUNTY], NJ , New – 5.05 inches, Old – 2.35 in 1901 , 117 in record.
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/extremes/records.php?ts=daily&elem=prcp&month=3&day=11&year=2011&sts=US&submitted=Get+Records#recs
Since this is relevant, i repost this study link, which yield a 1 minute google research …
Potential for a hazardous geospheric response to projected future climate changes http://rsta.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/368/1919/2317.abstract
Following the recent quake in the Pacific, the floods in New Jersey, the fires in Oklahoma and Texas (and one could go on and on…) even climate change-UNaware Americans are starting to sense that Mother Nature isn’t happy. They are getting worried. It’s time for President Obama to brief the country he is sworn to protect. Subject: the reality and urgency of climate change.
Just imagine this: One well-written 40-minute “State of the Climate” speech from the White House Oval Office, with paid repetitions on all TV shows, could change things overnight. We could move from a heads-in-the-sand situation to a “let’s get this job done” mind set, while also stimulating the economy, adding jobs, and more. Our defense spending needs to be redirected.
(And don’t tell me that the President of the US, with all of his powers, his access to our best PR firms, scientists, speech writers–you name it–does NOT have the power to message the truth!)
Think about the fantastic difference it would make. I can’t possibly even begin to list the many benefits. It’s mind-boggling! The simplest way to express it might be to say that those thousands of us who are daily ‘tearing our hair out’ as we think about the insanity of what’s happening, who kick ourselves for being so ineffectual in turning the tide, would give nearly anything to be able to say, “Gosh we’re on the path of science and reason again;” and “We have our lives back.”
This leaves aside the important issues of regained national pride for America’s role as a global leader, and recognition of the critical role of science in getting us to where we are today.
So, in anticipation of his coming work to educate and lead Americans out of climate darkness, let me be among the first to express my gratitude to President Obama for having the tremendous courage that it took for him to tell Americans the cold, unvarnished truth about global warming.
I can almost hear Obama’s “State of the Climate” address’ concluding words now:
“Yes, we need to move quickly away from fossil fuels, but rest assured: there is enough clean, renewable energy for all of us on this planet today. We simply need to work together, as a nation, and as citizens of our one Earth, to do the work, and make the investments, that will quickly bring our energy technology into the twenty-first century. Thank you, and God bless!”
C’mon Obama, this is your chance to be mankind’s hero of all time: You can turn this “ship” before we “hit the iceberg.” With your silence, most American’s don’t believe it’s THAT serious. How sad to “flush” man’s glorious history, all because one powerful man is silent!
Losing hope,
Roger
P.S. Please sign the Obama petition to http://www.change.org/global_warming_education_network. Alternatively, you can call Obama’s comment line, 9-5, M-F at 202-456-1111, or send a written message by clicking on the “Contact Us” button in the upper right corner, at http://www.whitehouse.gov.
P.P.S. If he doesn’t act, I think it’s time to “go the limit” on more drastic measures, such as…hmm…any suggestions, fellow CP readers?
I don’t know about the warming affect, at plate boundries there is always heat being generated as the plates are forced at the subduction zone, rock against rock as they slide past each other. But water weights alot and as more is added to the continental shelves with water rise and expansion it must be putting addtional stress on the rock strata beneath, and the distrbution of melt water is not uniform globally. Some ocean basins are getting more than others which also will be adding stress to the plate boundries.
Naomi Klein is interviewed about her forthcoming book on the politics of climate change:
http://www.democracynow.org/2011/3/9/my_fear_is_that_climate_change
COLLAPSE MOVIE
ON NETFLIX AND ITUNES
In case you wish to ruin an otherwise pretty good day in the US…
http://collapsemovie.com/reviews.html
Q: Are we anywhere near the hundredth monkey, or no where near?
Following up Idunno (#6), Leland Palmer (#7 and #8), MARodger (#9), Roger (#10) and Prokaryotes (#12) -
This is a great, important and new topic for CP and the world, with the pre-eminent scientist being Bill McGuire and the key paper the one Prokaryotes, CP’s link champion (with Colorado Bob) alerts us to at #12.
Recently I brought this up in comment #55 about 10 posts below under the “JPL Bombshell” (less than an hour before the Japan earthquake!)discussion of sea level rise, then again in comments #62 and #73, with the best being Lewis C’s comment at #66 there that also links to McGuire and to an also excellent article in the UK Guardian.
Then I brought it up again just below in the “Japan Syndrome” post at comments #50 and #98. (Many gem comments are at the end of the most meaningful posts, often those with the most comments, so surfing the ends of long posts can often be very productive.)
My metaphor is that the tectonic stresses in subduction zones and other large faults are like powder kegs, waiting to go off when their fuses are lit.
Global warming and the redistribution of weight from ice to ocean, the poles toward the equator and northern hemisphere (much ice, especially in Greenland) to the southern (mostly ocean) hemisphere is like lighting millions of firecrackers and throwing them in so many parts of the world that some of them will inevitably light those fuses.
As this century and future centuries accelerated the melting greatly, it will instead be like throwing billions of lit Molotov cocktails around, with the lighting of far more fuses.
And in your thoughtful comments it appears even the powder kegs themselves could be growing.
If science proves these links and the number of biggest earthquakes continues (my comment #62 under JPL bombshell lists the 24 largest earthquakes on record over the last 426 years, and 5 have now occurred in the last 17 years), this could provide the needed education we thought would come mostly from the weather-climate change connection (the other, infinitely more well-established link we need to be pursuing as much as possible). Let’s hear more!
As promised (with small revisions from this original comment at #62 under “JPL Bombshell), below is a list of history’s 24 greatest earthquakes listed in the order of their magnitude. It’s interesting to note that on this list that goes back 426 years, two of the eight most powerful quakes have happened within the last year and two weeks, the most recent of course being the one in Japan two days ago.
Three others on the list are within the last six and a quarter years, all around Sumatra.
The most powerful ones are within the last half century or so with 5 of the most powerful 17 within the last six years. Now, earthquakes are natural events that have always occurred, seismographs have only been in use for a little over half a century, and it is human nature to try to find a pattern even when there might not be one.
But it’s at least worth asking if just the eight-inch rise in annual sea level adding weight to the seafloor (all the most recent quakes have been at sea) or some other accelerating factor could be at least partly responsible, maybe lighting the fuse of the powder keg of plate tensions earlier or more frequently than would otherwise be the case.
I’m not saying there’s anything to this, because even searching on-line the only reference I’ve been able to find is still in Susan Casey’s excellent and extremely well-researched book “The Wave” about increasing wave heights due to global warming.
Many of you have better search skills and more patience than I do. Anyone find anything?
And if eight inches of sea level rise is a contributing factor to these earthquakes, what would an additional foot in 2/5 of the time mean? What would Jim Hansen’s 5 meters (over 16 feet) by 2100 or whenever it occurs mean?
Again, there might well be nothing to this. . .
Largest earthquakes by magnitude
Pos. Date Location Name Magnitude
1 May 22, 1960 Valdivia, Chile 9.5
2 March 27, 1964 Prince William Sound, USA 9.2
3 December 26, 2004 Sumatra, Indonesia 9.1
4 November 4, 1952 Kamchatka, Russia 9.0
4 August 13, 1868 Arica, Chile 9.0
4 January 26, 1700 Cascadia, US & Canada 9.0
7 March 11, 2011 Tōhoku region, Japan 8.9
8 February 27, 2010 Maule, Chile 8.8
8 January 31, 1906 Ecuador-Colombia 8.8
8 November 25, 1833 Sumatra, Indonesia 8.8
11 February 4, 1965 Rat Islands, Alaska 8.7
11 November 1, 1755 Lisbon, Portugal 8.7
11 July 8, 1730 Valparaiso, Chile 8.7
14 March 28, 2005 Sumatra, Indonesia 8.6
14 March 9, 1957 Andreanof Is, Alaska 8.6
14 August 15, 1950 Assam, India, Tibet 8.6
17 September 12, 2007 Sumatra, Indonesia 8.5
17 October 13, 1963 Kuril Islands, USSR 8.5
17 February 1, 1938 Banda Sea, Indonesia 8.5
17 February 3, 1923 Kamchatka, Russia 8.5
17 November 11, 1922 Atacama Region, Chile 8.5
17 May 24, 1751 Concepción, Chile 8.5
17 October 20, 1687 Lima, Peru 8.5
17 December 16, 1575 Valdivia, Chile 8.5
Meet the zero-energy transparent TV
A zero-energy TV you can see through? I know what you’re thinking: “That’s called a pane of glass.” But this transparent screen, which Samsung unveiled at an expo in Germany, isn’t just glass, it’s FUTURE GLASS.
For starters, the screen uses so little energy that it can be run by solar panels that feed off the ambient light in the room, like those old-school solar calculators. And while it can play regular TV images, it can also project pictures or data onto an otherwise transparent screen. That means it could be used for all kinds of crazy sci-fi applications — windshields that display Google maps as you drive, for instance, or bay windows that overlay your neighbor’s vinyl siding with a soothing view of Tahiti.
http://www.grist.org/article/2011-03-10-meet-the-zero-energy-transparent-tv
Wouldn’t it be nice to embrace the future? Instead we run the planet into doom. Because why?
Richard Brenne “CP’s link champion”
Thanks :)
Richard, C. Lewis post #28 sums it up too
Quote
According to USGS lists of all recorded large earthquakes, there has definitely been a very significant very sudden rise in the frequency of events above magnitude 6.0., starting in the late ‘90s.
As I’m unable to post a graph here, the best I can do to show the results of a spreadsheet assessment of the change is to list the average number of events of 6.0 or higher for successive periods since 1900.
1900 to 1997: 195 events in 98 years; average 1.99 /yr
1986 to 1997: 27 events in 12 years; average 2.25 /yr
1998 to 2009: 317 events in 12 years; average 26.42 /yr
As a graph, this data looks remarkably like a hockey stick.
(So have we got enough to arm a team yet ?)
I suspect that IF a causal link between cryosphere decline (> ice loss > sea-level rise) and rising major earthquakes’ frequency continues to gain scientific credibility, then it may well have a very different effect than the threat of rising drought and flood damage events on nations’ tolerance to date of status-quo foot-dragging over a stringent binding climate treaty.
http://climateprogress.org/2011/03/11/japanese-nuclear-plant-earthquake-tsunami-cripple-cooling-system/#comment-330982
What we talking here about is considered another “hockey stick”.
Earthquake disaster -
If one clicks my name it links to our group. We support ShelterBox . This from them today :
The latest reports coming out of Japan state that more than 215,000 people have been made homeless by the two-pronged disaster with the need for emergency shelter being the top priority.
ShelterBox were on the ground in Japan within less than 24 hours after the earthquake struck. The hugely-experience ShelterBox Response Team (SRT), consisting of Mark Pearson (UK), Lasse Petersen (AU), John Diksa (FR) and David Eby (US), are now working with authorities to assess the areas of most need.
http://www.shelterboxusa.org/news.php?id=614
Our fund raising link for ShelterBox -
Target: £500.00
Raised so far: £49,517.37
http://www.justgiving.com/Colorado-Bob
——–
These people ( ShelterBox ) are supported by Rotary, and are an outgrowth from them.
£500.00 British pounds buys one box. The list of our boxes and where they went , we just set out to buy one for Haiti.
Target: £500.00
Raised so far: £49,517.37
http://www.shelterboxusa.org/trackbox.php?ClientName=Mr+Colorado+Bob&Country=USA
See the NOAA attribution of the 2010 Russian Heat Wave (http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2011/20110309_russianheatwave.html ) and remember that the NH jet stream is the result of heat flowing northward toward the heat sink of the Arctic. In short, the jet stream is the output of a classic heat engine. And, NOAA is telling us that rapid, dramatic changes to the heat source of this engine (warming world), and rapid, dramatic changes to the heat sink of this engine do not affect the output of this engine?
Their words, “While a contribution to the heat wave from climate change could not be entirely ruled out, if it was present, it played a much smaller role than naturally occurring meteorological processes in explaining this heat wave’s intensity.“
I think NOAA got so wound up in details that they lost track of the basic physics of the process.
Am I crazy?
Joe + CP admins, wouldn’t it be neat to have “nested comments”?
http://www.google.com/search?channel=fs&q=nested+comments+wordpress&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8
i’m no. 27 and there are no comments yet on tim dechristopher being found guilty for disrupting an illegal drilling rights auction in utah, and now possibly facing 10 yrs in prison and $750,000 fine?
are we just wonky enviro wordsmiths who can’t leave our keyboards? are we waiting for someone else to start a resistance movement? and until then, we will be in charge of the handwringing and scientific facts?
read this: http://www.climatedirectaction.org/call/ and pass it on to 10 enviros.
then talk to 3 people who are concerned about global warming and start a resistance movement. that is how they start, you know, and afterward go online and try to make yours grow.
we’ll all meet back here next weekend, and tell how it went.
U.S. must finally end its addiction to oil http://edition.cnn.com/2011/OPINION/03/12/martin.energy.costs/index.html
Coal and oil IS sequestered carbon and in order to combat climate change we have to sequester carbon!
“Nobody Wins a Nuclear War” But “Success” is Possible
Mixed Message of 1950s Air Force Film on a U.S.-Soviet Conflict, View the Complete Film http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/nukevault/ebb336/index.htm
“sure could use a little good news today…”
A so called “peoples revolt” organised by denialist politicians and radio shock-jocks opposing Australia’s move to put a price on carbon attracted “several hundred” deluded souls to a rally in Melbourne on Saturday.
On the other side of the city a rally of “several thousand” gathered to demand immediate action on climate change.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/03/12/3162515.htm
A thought : What will the affects be, if any of that powerful a tsunani which affects the whole water colume from surface to sea floor on mixing the warmer surface waters into the deep ocean and pushing across the pacific basin all the way to the West Coast of the Americans on the el nino/la nina conditon in the mid Pacific? Could it cause warmer water at depth affecting not only marine life but ocean currents like the Humbolt off South America or have brought warmer water to the Antartic basin?
99% of Queensland is disaster declared.
The months of heat, humidity, stench, mould, virii and the endless bloody rain begins to take it’s psychological toll as victims lash out at their own saviours.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/03/11/3161969.htm
Vic #27 your right but I along with many others here have been active long before blog was even a word and now my goals are diffrent just because time has become our greatest enemy. We are building local connections for food, skills, sharing clubs, supporting local businesses, forming Co-Ops for power and transportation. Everything local and communication and connectiveness from home to the wider world.
Others have mentioned how much they appreciate the links provided by Colorado Bob and Prokaryotes, and I want to add my own word of thanks. The links are timely, informative, and time-savers and I hope both of you keep them coming.
Regarding a link between AGW and increased seismic activity (Richard, Leland, MARodger, Prokaryotes and Anonymous), we must recall that we are on the first recorded human excursion to Eaarth. Therefore we cannot reliably rely on prior studies. We must perform novel thought experiments in order to see the link.
Think, with me, of the expansion joints that engineers often include in the designs of bridges and highway when concrete and/or steel are involved, and when large fluctuations in temperature are expected. These are installed every so many meters to forestall the occurrence of buckling bridges, and roads.
A bit of research confirms that the coefficients of thermal expansion are quite similar for concrete and steel, and for granite, sandstone and other materials that comprise the Earth’s crust.
Now, when global warming is warming Earth’s crust, we need to apply the coefficient of expansion to the entire length of the material being heated—in this case, up to about 25,000 miles. Thus, with a coefficient averaging about 0.0001 per degree Centigrade for the Earth’s crust, one would expect the circumference of the Earth to expand by about 1300 feet for every degree of warming.
Reports peg Japan’s recent quake to have moved the islands a few meters. That’s only about 1/100th of the total amount of adjusting that Eaarth needs to make in order for her to sleep soundly again. This could be just the beginning, friends.
K. Nockels @34, where you addressing me or somebody else perhaps ?
This appears to illustrate the point made by Prokaryotes @26 regarding the suitability of a nested comments styled interface for conversations such as these.
I’d also like to join the round of applause for Prokaryotes and Colorado Bob and of course Joe and his team and everyone else working to put an end to this madness.
Richard Brenne @18. Interesting, I’ve been researching much the same thing.
- The Greenland icesheet & mountain glaciers are the dominant contributors to global sea level at the moment. There are more recent papers showing a greater trend , but a good graphic is from Maier 2007 here:
Glaciers Dominate Eustatic Sea-Level Rise in the 21st Century
- The vast majority of this ice mass is in the Northern Hemisphere, therefore this will manifest itself primarily in the Pacific (See Kuhn 2010 for a first stab at estimating variable sea level response to ice melt)
- Tidal gauges in the Southwestern Pacific are showing sea level trends much higher than the global average (although this is variable)
- This is the satellite altimetry trend for SLR from 1992-2010 from University of Colorado.
- Notice the marked anomaly along the western boundary of the pacific plate (compare with plate tectonic map here
- Compare with very recent earthquake activity from USGS here. Yeah, just a snapshot in time, but interesting.
Sadly there doesn’t seem to be much research into this. What very few scientific papers I can find are paywalled, and some abstracts are of scientists urging further research in this area. Guess we’ll just have to wait and see if anything new comes to light.
Burning Down the House
http://www.joepublicfilms.com
This guy is good, very good. His documntary “Out of Balance” deserves recognition and wide distribution. His new work titled, “At Any Cost”, will be released soon and looks to be another winner.
Please watch the trailer.
Chris
Burning Down the House
Out of Balance is available from Netflix. Netflix viewer reviews are interesting to read.
Great work Joe Romm. I encourage people to visit amazon dot com science and politics discussions for some heated interactions
http://www.amazon.com/tag/politics/ref=tag_cdf_hd_itdp
http://www.amazon.com/tag/science/ref=tag_cdf_hd_itdp
Another paper about ice melt and earthquakes. I guess it isn’t too surprising if you think of things like isostatic rebound, and I also wonder if the extra weight of water in various places may be a factor. I see Fox News is already labeling any such discussion as the work of “fanatics”
http://rsta.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/368/1919/2501.abstract
King tides have been known for a long
time to be descriptive of the change of
The high tide at different seasons.
“Civilization exists by geological consent,
subject to change without notice.” – Will Durant
But civilization has changed it’s possible
impacts on the geological consent?
DARPA Center for Seismic Studies Central Data Repository
Since 1982 DARPA’s Center for Seismic Studies (Center) has supported
advances in seismology by providing high-quality data and by
encouraging the acceptance of standards for data formats and software.
Our primary objective is to provide for the research
community easy access to the data most important for addressing
problems in treaty monitoring seismology. http://gcmd.nasa.gov/records/GCMD_EARTH_INT_SEIS_CSS_01.html
Economically, the quake and tsunami might have an unepxected impact on the Japanese economy that I don’t think would immediately spring to mind in the West:
Japan tsunami death toll could hit 40,000, warns Welsh academic
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2011/03/13/japan-tsunami-death-toll-could-hit-40-000-warns-welsh-academic-91466-28326464/
There is an excellent excerpt from a Naomi Klein interview posted on alternet.org . The title of the article is: Why Climate Change is so threatening to Right Wing Ideologues.
Here’s an older paper on negative correlation between glaciation and volcanism, not buried behind a pay wall.
Fire or Ice: Anticorrelation of volcanism and glaciation in California over the past 800,000 years
The Sendai, Japan Airport as the Tsunami waters flood the runways . Notice the survivors on the roof , what you don’t see, is people running from the solar panels. After this terrible disaster, those solar panels are ready to make electricity again, once the system has been inspected for damage. No one will be spending time and money pumping sea water on them, so they don’t explode.
http://cbsolaroven.blogspot.com/2011/03/sendai-airport-during-great-quake.html
Michele Bachmann: “What I love about New Hampshire and what we have in common is our extreme love for liberty. You’re the state where the shot was heard around the world in Lexington and Concord.”
–David Kurtz
————-
Bachmann will now travel to Dallas , and come out against pro-football.
Nature Climate Change ready for launch – March 13, 2011
Nature Climate Change, the latest addition to the Nature branch of science journals, has made its debut in publishing original research with an online paper on climate impacts on African maize yields.
The study, by David Lobell of Stanford University in California and scientists with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center in Mexico, finds that 1°C of warming would result in yield losses for 65% of the current maize-growing region in Africa. Under drought conditions, 100% of the currently cultivated area would experience yield losses, with 75% of this area suffering losses of at least 20%.
The first print issue of Nature Climate Change, which has been open to submissions since October last year, will appear on 29 March.
The issue will feature several articles on the impacts of climate change on regional food security. Interdisciplinary research, including original social science research, on impacts of climate change on agriculture and other economic sectors will be the new journal’s main focus, says Olive Heffernan, chief editor of Nature Climate Change.
http://blogs.nature.com/news/thegreatbeyond/2011/03/nature_climate_change_ready_fo_1.html
Earthquake, Nuclear Evacuation Update from Japan
In the aftermath of Japan’s worst-ever recorded earthquake and a ferocious tsunami, recovery efforts are being complicated by an evacuation of tens of thousands as cooling mechanisms at nuclear reactors near Tokyo have failed. http://www.newslook.com/videos/297483-earthquake-nuclear-evacuation-update-from-japan?autoplay=true
Anyone know what is occurring with Deltoid, or indeed the whole ScienceBlogs site???
Cheers – John
Roger #36 “Think, with me, of the expansion joints that engineers often include in the designs of bridges and highway when concrete and/or steel are involved, and when large fluctuations in temperature are expected. These are installed every so many meters to forestall the occurrence of buckling bridges, and roads.
A bit of research confirms that the coefficients of thermal expansion are quite similar for concrete and steel, and for granite, sandstone and other materials that comprise the Earth’s crust.
Now, when global warming is warming Earth’s crust, we need to apply the coefficient of expansion to the entire length of the material being heated—in this case, up to about 25,000 miles. Thus, with a coefficient averaging about 0.0001 per degree Centigrade for the Earth’s crust, one would expect the circumference of the Earth to expand by about 1300 feet for every degree of warming.
Reports peg Japan’s recent quake to have moved the islands a few meters. That’s only about 1/100th of the total amount of adjusting that Eaarth needs to make in order for her to sleep soundly again. This could be just the beginning, friends.”
Think about the analogy, when observing a baking process inside an oven. The outer crust will roast and split up, just like cracking earth from drought. The ocean currents could be driven by the thermal differences between the poles and the equator and when the planet loose this, the heat balance potential will further shrink and make tectonic plate action more common.
—
An ocean current is a continuous, directed movement of ocean water generated by the forces acting upon this mean flow, such as breaking waves, wind, Coriolis force, temperature and salinity differences and tides caused by the gravitational pull of the Moon and the Sun. Depth contours, shoreline configurations and interaction with other currents influence a current’s direction and strength. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_current
Partial Meltdowns Presumed at Crippled Reactors
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/14/world/asia/14nuclear.html?_r=1&hp
The photo of the young boy getting tested for radioactivity says a lot about nuclear energy.
Japan has the world’s tenth-largest population, with over 127 million people. The Greater Tokyo Area, which includes the de facto capital city of Tokyo and several surrounding prefectures, is the largest metropolitan area in the world, with over 30 million residents. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan
Logistical nightmares …
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.cfm?release=2011-074
NASA Study Goes to Earth’s Core for Climate Insights
March 09, 2011
The latest evidence of the dominant role humans play in changing Earth’s climate comes not from observations of Earth’s ocean, atmosphere or land surface, but from deep within its molten core.
Hell on earth…sad days.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/13/japan-earthquake-death-toll-food-water-electricity_n_835096.html
with the global warming multiplier, extreme events not directly associated (this earthquake could be indirectly though…) with climate change, will topple developed nations with in a decade or 2.
The future looks tough.
New Jersey floodwaters crest, 2,000 homes evacuated http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/13/us-newjersey-flooding-idUSTRE72C33W20110313
CNBC analysts believe that the Japanese tsunami is good news for the US economy. Perhaps, they believe that there is a lot of instant rebuilding to be done in Japan, but they forget that this rebuilding draws down on the Natural capital of the planet, thereby hastening our end point. Watch Disaster Capitalists at their blatant worst…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lX80vWJhtMk
I’ll wear black until they come up with a darker color.
-Bruce Cockburn
“If I had a Rocket Launcher” from the 1984 album Stealing Fire
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7vCww3j2-w
Today’s NPR interview
http://www.npr.org/2011/03/13/134465686/bruce-cockburn-a-veteran-traveler-finds-comfort
We’ve stolen fire and the gods are pissed.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prometheus
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/03/14/3163254.htm?section=justin
Nuke stoke dive…
For the good news bias
Solar Power Breakthrough Claimed By Stanford Researchers
It’s the Holy Grail at clean energy research labs all over the world and something which could address long term energy issues domestically and beyond: more efficient photovoltaic solar. We’ve told you about scientists studying full-spectrum cells, using textured substrates, trying self-regenerating nanomaterials – we’ve even reported on an anti-reflective film inspired by a coating found in moth eyes. Now a Stanford team is claiming a breakthrough in making cheaper, more efficient panels by adding a single layer of organic molecules to solar cells.
The researchers studied this technique on a fairly new type of solar cell that uses tiny particles of semiconductors called quantum dots. Quantum dot solar cells are cheaper to produce than traditional silicon cells, but they haven’t caught on due to their relative inefficiency.
For Stacey Bent, a chemical engineering professor at Stanford, this represented something of a challenge. She knew that solar cells made of a single material have a maximum efficiency of about 31 percent, a limitation of the fixed energy level they can absorb, and that quantum dot solar cells didn’t share this limitation. “Quantum dots can be tuned to absorb a certain wavelength of light just by changing their size,” the Stanford report on her research says. “And they can be used to build more complex solar cells that have more than one size of quantum dot, allowing them to absorb multiple wavelengths of light.”
So Bent and her team coated a titanium dioxide semiconductor in their quantum dot solar cell with a very thin single layer of organic molecules. They found that just that single layer, less than a nanometer thick, was enough to triple the efficiency of the solar cells.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/10/solar-power-breakthrough_n_833483.html
@60 Sailesh Rao:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lX80vWJhtMk (Statement begins at the 35 second mark.)
“The human toll here, looks to be much worse than the economic toll and we can be grateful for that.”
I tell you, these people are clinical psychopaths.
Europe may be gathering a critical mass to push for 30% cuts in CO2 by 2020
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2011/mar/13/chris-huhne-eu-climate-targets
A Proposal to help make rapid progress in reducing greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). This would provide trade associations & companies a framework in which to make progress and allow for 3rd party verification and public sharing.
It is recognized that barring any laws, companies may be reluctant to participate. That is ok; they and the Publilc still need a roadmap. And leadership companies should strive to lead. Also this provides guidance to the public as to what Companies should be doing to address climate change.
RISK MANAGEMENT FOR COMPANIES:
GIVEN: The scientific consensus on climate change as being man made and serious is overwhelming. Re: The NAS letter to Congress . Also see: NOAA; NASA; IPCC; UCS; NSIDC, etc
Climate Change has a high potential to be very destructive to both human lives & lifestyles and lives of future generations . And in addition destructive to many life forms including the food chain of the oceans.
The Risk from unforeseen tipping points (permafrost rapid melting; ocean life impacts; lack of glacier water on Indian subcontinent; rapid melt of Greenland or Antarctic ice fields; ) would be catastrophic. See MIT reports.
Thus all companies must develop sound scientific risk management action plans. These would start with senior management establishing energy reduction goals and policies. Specific action steps appropriate to each company that included metrics and milestones would be specified.
A Risk Management Strategy:
This is consistent with the philosophy of most leadership companies. Leadership Companies have already started tracking their GHG emissions and have established baselines. Many have started the journey to reduce their GHG emissions. The difference is that this proposal lays out hard numbers with time lines and establishes a credit for past performances in energy reductions.
PROPOSAL:
EPA would provide a waiver to companies that pledge to undertake the following action plan. Note this requires the use of 3rd party verification for baselines and annual calculations. .
Companies would pledge in writing that they would reduce GHG emissions by 2% per year absolute (not indexed) from coal and oil sources from all their global operations including offices and warehouses, manufacturing, laboratories, etc that are at least 50% owned . Note: GHG emissions include those generated on site and emissions from all purchased energy. Note in general for manufacturing companies warehouses are small GHG emitters. Thus a company would only need to use 3rd party verification on 85 % of its GHGs emission . Once Company policy is set then a GHG baseline and protocol as to what to count and how and allocations, etc. There are protocols available. Third party verification is required.
The report out time period would be every 5 yrs to the public and EPA. GHG = Greenhouse gas emissions include CO2; CH4; N2O ; any gas released that has a Global warming potential greater than 20 and a threshold limit release of 5000 pounds.
The Companies would ask their supply chain to also participate but would not demand this.
The 2% is absolute not indexed to production or any other metric. Absolute reduction is what counts.
Natural gas GHG emissions are exempt for 10 yrs in order to reduce those fossil fuel sources with the highest impact first.
The use of the following would count as zero GHG emissions: Solar PV and thermal; wind; nuclear; biomass -as long as the source was sustainable; tides; fuel cells; energy efficiency reductions & Nat gas for 10 yrs.
If a company has reduced it’s GHG emissions over the last 10 yrs by 15% absolute (not thru divestures) then they would have a 6 yr time period where they would only need to reduce 1% per yr absolute.
Failure to meet the 5 yr time frames would have penalties (to be resolved.)
Discussion on climate and its interaction with volcanism and earthquakes here:
http://news.mongabay.com/2011/0311-japan_tsunami_climate.html
Pielke Jr. might think Muller gives the best concise summary of “hide the decline”. He’s wrong.
Phil Jones gives the best when explaining it to the President of the Royal Society, Sir Paul Nurse.
Skip to 21:17
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQQXEwfd4ZY
Transcript:
Phil Jones — The [World Meteorological] organisation wanted a relatively simple diagram for their particular audience. What we started off doing was the three series with the instrumental temperatures on the end, clearly differentiated from the tree ring series, but they thought that was too complicated to explain to their audience. So, so what we did was just to add them on and bring them up to the present. And, as I say, this was a World Meteorological Organisation statement. It had hardly any coverage in the media at the time, and had virtually no coverage for the next ten years, until the release of the emails.
Paul Nurse — So why do you think so much fuss was made about the emails and this graph, rather than the peer reviewed science?
Phil Jones — I think it’s that the number of climate change sceptics, or doubters, deniers, whatever you want to call them, just wanted to use these emails for their own purposes to cast doubt on the basic science. The basic science is in the peer reviewed literature, and I wish more people would read that than read the emails.
What if the total losses from Chernobyl, Three Mile Island and Fukushima exceed ALL the profits by all the nuclear powerplants (ignoring subsidies)?
Would it be rational to conclude that it is irrational to continue building nuclear power plants? Will China be the first to postpone construction of nuclear power plants? Will we be the last?
Is there a place that could guarantee no quakes for the foreseeable future? How come the US Government has been unable to find a suitable repository for Nuclear Waste? Is it Ethical to sell power plants if they have no means to dispose of nuclear waste? Some claim that such waste is the ideal target for terrorists.
Was the pool of nuclear waste in Fukushima the source of the Hydrogen that blew up its containment building? Do we all say “It ain’t my problem?” Even if my grandchildren are at risk?
Richard Brenne reported on March 12, 2011 at 4:02 pm, that the 24 largest quakes “within the last year and two weeks… the most recent in Japan”, the period covered was 426 years. You think minute temperature effects from Global Warming could possibly open gaps in the Earth crust mantle? This is not a conclusion, only speculation. Feel free to object, or not.
But, it might “explain” the implications from extrapolation of the data. Have a nice Quake!