Comment from Terry
May 12th, 2008 at 8:00 pm

Allow the maps some time to completeonce the radio button is clicked.

Comment from P B
May 13th, 2008 at 10:04 pm

yeah, I might move to a different server for the tile layers (the things that overlay on the base google maps to effectively make these maps)…mine has been ultra slow lately.

Comment from Terry
May 14th, 2008 at 4:38 pm

From My cousin Carol:
The climate atlas is
very impressive. It's really frightening to see what is happening to this planet. I've thought
for some time that if we don't change our ways, that Mother Nature will just say farewell to
the human race. So it's encouraging to see that folks are trying to elevate awareness. It's also good to see that more work is being done to make a difference. It is hopeful.

Comment from Terry
May 14th, 2008 at 6:33 pm

http://www.citizensugar.com/1626527?ybf1=1

Comment from WVfan
May 14th, 2008 at 8:12 pm

How does one explain that 2007 was 1 degree cooler than the previous 10 years essentially blowing global warming out of the water? Not to mention, this year spring has been cooler than previous history. Not trying to start an argument but I'm just curious as statistics are easy to skew one way or the other. I tend to lean toward the earth having a natural heating and cooling cycle. Main reason being that the icecaps have been receding long before man was producing this much carbon dioxide (Ice age). Another interesting thing to ponder is why are there old shipwrecks stuck in polar ice that has been frozen for 100's of years? They had to get there somehow and I don't think they sailed over ice. Not saying that we do not need to do our best to take care of our planet, I'm just curious as to what is really happening b/c there are facts on both sides. And yes, I do carpool, recycle, save energy in everyway possible, and drive a fuel efficient vehicle. Just some food for thought as people tend to ignore facts to get behind a cause.

Comment from P B
May 14th, 2008 at 9:25 pm

WVfan,

I understand what your point of view and thanks for your comment, as well as your commitment to live sustainably. Earth obviously does have cycles of cooling and heating, and the system is incredibly complex. However, it is undeniable that humans have an effect on the environment. Carbon Dioxide is only one of the effects. It accumulates in the atmosphere, and that is the chief concern as we continue to up the parts per million. One year doesn't make a trend. If you would like to refer to this site http://www.edf.org/page.cfm?tagID=1011

many of your questions will be answered.

I hope you find the maps interesting and intuitive…

PB

Comment from WVfan
May 14th, 2008 at 10:05 pm

I do find the website interesting and will continue to study this topic as it affects us all. I do agree with many of the topics but it is undeniable that last year being cooler and this year starting off cooler, it could very well be a trend towards cooler climate. Living in San Antonio has been very nice the last year and half as opposed to previous summers and it is very noticable. A trend has to start somewhere so why not think last year could be a sign of change. Not to mention the lack of Hurricanes in the Gulf the last 2 years. Frequency goes from a peak to a low in 5 years time??? I also believe that the technology we have today versus what we had 10-20-30-40 years ago doesn't provide a good sampling of data to really determine one way or the other as to humans impact on the environment. Not saying that humans don't have an impact as one walk by the San Antonio River or down the street will show you that we do in fact have a great impact. Good stuff though. Keep it up.

Comment from P B
May 14th, 2008 at 10:20 pm

WV,

thanks. A very common question regarding climate change is, "how will it affect me?" That is why I created this developing atlas. In time (as I add more maps to the atlas) there will be 3 distinct categories: 'what's going on right now', 'what are the latest projections', and 'what are the solutions'.

It would be nice to have a feed showing the global mean temps from the past 10 years of so (which would go into the 'what's going on now' category). Local trends will become apparent. But hopefully the global trend also is apparent. Have you seen the predictions on http://www.climateatlas.org/gw_outcomes.html

Hurricanes have been down in the gulf, but not elsewhere…

one map I'm working on shows the significant climate anomalies. I'm trying to convince NOAA to make a feed out of it…but check this out: http://www.climateatlas.org/news3.html