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Global Climate Change Digest
A Guide to Information on Greenhouse Gases and Ozone Depletion
Published July 1988 through June 1999

FROM VOLUME 1, NUMBER 1, JULY 1988

PROFESSIONAL PUBLICATIONS...
TREND ANALYSIS

Item #d88jul32

"Global Sea Level and Earth Rotation," W.R. Peltier (Dept. Phys., Univ. Toronto, Toronto, Ont. M5S 1A7, Can.), Science, 240(4854), 895-901, May 13, 1988.

Recent analyses of long-timescale changes in tide gauge observations indicate that the sea level is apparently rising somewhat in excess of one millimeter per year. Meier has suggested that the non-thermal component of this rise might result from the melting of small ice sheets and glaciers. This article describes how extremely accurate measurements of the earth's rotation, based on satellite laser ranging and very long baseline interferometry, were used to explore the constraints on earth rotation rate associated with such melting. Results indicate Meier's hypothesis is plausible and is an important consideration in the debate over contemporary climate change.

Item #d88jul33

"Global Surface Air Temperatures: Update through 1987," J. Hansen (NASA Goddard Space Flight Ctr., Inst. Space Studies, New York NY 10025), S. Lebedeff, Geophys. Res. Lett., 15(4), 323-326, Apr. 1988.

Addition of two years of data to a previous analysis shows the surface air temperatures in the 1980s to be the warmest of those years on record, with a high rate of warming since the mid-1960s. Finer spatial and temporal resolution of the data are also examined. (See also next citation.)

Item #d88jul34

"Evidence for Global Warming in the Past Decade," P.D. Jones (Clim. Res. Unit, Univ. E. Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, UK),..J.E. Hansen, Nature, 332(6167), 790, Apr. 28, 1988.

From 1901 to 1987, the warmest global surface air temperature occurred in 1987; this is partly attributed to the strong 1986-1987 El Nino/Southern Oscillation event. This and the persistent surface and tropospheric warmth of the 1980s might be consequences of increased concentrations of CO₂ and other radiatively active gases.

Item #d88jul35

"On the Temporal Change of Stratospheric NO2," M.T. Coffey (NCAR, POB 3000, Boulder CO 80307), Geophys. Res. Lett., 15(4), 331-334, Apr. 1988.

Some recent theories on the decreased level of Antarctic O3 require significant increases in mid- and high latitude NO2. Ground-based, aircraft and satellite measurements of stratospheric NO2 in both hemispheres show a consistent annual cycle, but no long-term trend from 1975 to 1986.

Item #d88jul36

"Some Recent Trends in Precipitation in Western Canada and Their Possible Link to Rising Carbon Dioxide," M.D. Danard (Atmos. Dynamics Corp., 3052 Woodridge Pl., RR 7, Victoria, B.C. V8X 3X3, Can.), T.S. Murty, Atmos.-Ocean, 26(1), 139-145, Mar. 1988.

Authors report results they describe as speculative and limited in scope, in the hope of provoking further study. Between 1931-1960 and 1951-1980, more stations than not showed an increase in mean annual and seasonal precipitation. That these changes could be related to CO₂ warming is considered. Regional variations suggest an orographic influence and increases southwesterly flow. In related work, a primitive equation atmospheric model was used to study the effect on cyclogenesis of a 2° C rise in surface air and sea surface temperatures in the northeastern Pacific.

Item #d88jul37

"Historical Decline of Red Spruce Populations and Climatic Warming," S.P. Hamburg (Univ. Kansas, Lawrence KS 66045), C.V. Cogbill, Nature, 331, 428-431, Feb. 4, 1988.

The role of natural climatic influences on the recent decline observed in red spruce in the eastern U.S. was evaluated by examining long-term tree population data from old-growth stands. Results indicate a population decline since 1800, which the authors propose is related to a warming trend in mean temperature.

Item #d88jul38

"Mean Air Temperature Variations of the Northern Hemisphere for 1841-1985," K.Y. Vinnikov (State Hydrol. Inst., USSR), P.J. Groisman et al., Meteor. Gidrol., No. 1, 45-55, 1987. (Also published in Sov. Meteor. Hydrol., No 1, 1987.)

Applies a statistically optimal averaging technique to surface temperatures from about 300 stations in the Northern Hemisphere to estimate mean monthly and mean annual temperatures. Results support the existence of recent global warming.