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Why Were 2023 and 2024 So Hot?

Union of Concerned Scientists

Albedo is the total reflection of incoming solar radiation by Earth. In 2020, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) reduced the limit on the amount of sulfur in ships fuel oil, which then led to a reduction in sulphur dioxide and particulate matter emissions which form aerosols in the atmosphere. What is albedo?

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The CO2 problem in six easy steps (2022 Update)

Real Climate

The fact that there is a natural greenhouse effect (that the atmosphere restricts the passage of infra-red (IR) radiation from the Earth’s surface to space) is easily deducible from; i) the mean temperature of the surface (around 15ºC) and, ii) knowing that the planet is normally close to radiative equilibrium. in IPCC TAR).

Radiation 352
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A CERES of fortunate events…

Real Climate

That is long enough to see that there has been a noticeable trend in the Earth’s Energy Imbalance (EEI), mostly driven by a reduction in the solar radiation reflected by the planet, while the outgoing long wave radiation does not appear to contribute much. A paper last year (Goode et al., The total radiative forcing is.

Radiation 360
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Clauser-ology: Cloudy with a chance of meatballs

Real Climate

“It’s [the albedo is] kept the same” [False – for instance here is a paper (Loeb et al, 2020) comparing the changes in albedo in models to the CERES observations]. It is still the case that variations in cloud feedbacks are the dominant source of variability of climate sensitivity in models (Zelinka et al, 2020).

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The AMOC is slowing, it’s stable, it’s slowing, no, yes, …

Real Climate

2020 , Robson et al. While these simulations assimilate observational data, over most of the ocean surface these are basically sea surface temperatures, but surface heat loss depends also on air temperature, wind speed, humidity, radiation and cloud cover in complex ways, all of which are not accurately known. Menary et al.

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AR6 of the best

Real Climate

Now however, the updates to the historical warming , the use of four datasets instead of one, and of course, the series of record breaking years subsequently (2014, 2015, 2016/2020), the issue of variability in decadal trends is no longer so salient. 1981) which can be seen here. The radiative forcing bar chart now converted to temperature.

Sea Level 361
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The definitive CO2/CH4 comparison post

Real Climate

In 2020, CO 2 was at ~410 parts per million, while CH 4 was around 1870 parts per <it>billion</it> (or 1.87 First of all, let’s be clear about the relative magnitude of the gas concentrations. ppm, a factor of more than 200 smaller). W/m 2 for CH 4. a) Historical radiative forcing by emissions (W/m2) (IPCC fig TS.15a).(b)