The Earth is the Lord's
TV weather men and women, or at least their society, finally approved a definitive statement on climate change. Joining other major scientific bodies the American Meteorological Society’s states, “Prudence dictates extreme care in accounting for our relationship with the only planet known to be capable of sustaining human life.” The Society has issued a rigorous and fair statement on climate change. It agrees with our belief that creation care is a matter of life, and that climate changes presents one of the most persistent moral challenges.
The statement covers the gambit of climate science from how climate is changing “0.8°C (1.4°F) over the period 1901-2010 and about 0.5°C (0.9°F) over the period 1979-2010” to why it’s changing, “It is clear from extensive scientific evidence that the dominant cause of the rapid change in climate of the past half century is human-induced increases in the amount of atmospheric greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide (CO2), chlorofluorocarbons, methane, and nitrous oxide.”
Here’s what the society says we can expect now and in the years ahead:
“For many areas, model simulations suggest there will be a tendency towards more intense rain and snow events separated by longer periods without precipitation. However, changes in precipitation patterns are expected to differ considerably by region and by season. In some regions, the accelerated hydrological cycle will likely reinforce existing patterns of precipitation, leading to more severe droughts and floods. Further poleward, the greater warming at high latitudes and over land likely will change the large-scale atmospheric circulation, leading to significant regional shifts in precipitation patterns. For example, the model simulations suggest that precipitation will increase in the far northern parts of North America, and decrease in the southwest and south-central United States where more droughts will occur.”
The statement will stay in effect until August 2017 unless an updated statement is made. The statement concludes, “This scientific finding is based on a large and persuasive body of research.”
Faced with the mounting evidence exacerbated by extreme weather, the AMS provides increased national creditability in helping the American public to understand that our changing climate is a moral issue that impacts all of us, and not one that should follow the typical partisian divides.
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