History of climate change science

History of climate change science

In 1815 Jean-Pierre Perraudin described for the first time how giant boulders might be responsible for past glacial activity in places too warm for glaciers. In 1817, James Hutton, whose ideas of cyclic change over huge periods of time were later dubbed ‘cyclicitarianism’

About History of climate change science in brief

Summary History of climate change scienceIn the late 19th century, scientists first argued that human emissions of greenhouse gases could change the climate. In the 1960s, the evidence for the warming effect of carbon dioxide gas became increasingly convincing. By the 1990s, as a result of improving fidelity of computer models and observational work confirming the Milankovitch theory of the ice ages, a consensus position formed. Climate change is caused by factors that include oceanic processes, biotic processes, variations in solar radiation received by Earth, plate tectonics and volcanic eruptions, and human-induced alterations of the natural world. The latter effect is currently causing global warming, and \”climate change\” is often used to describe human-specific impacts. In 1815 Jean-Pierre Perraudin described for the first time how giant boulders might be responsible for past glacial activity in places too warm for glaciers. He noticed that it would take an exceptional force to move such large rocks on the land, and concluded it was the ice that had carried the boulders down into the valleys. Despite initial disbelief, Jean de Charpentier wrote, “I found his hypothesis so extravagant and even extravagant that I considered it not worth examining or even considering’s even considering.” In 1816, Jean-Baptiste de Chantal wrote: “The Earth had begun as an incandescent globe and was very gradually cooling.’ In 1817, James Hutton, whose ideas of cyclic change over huge periods of time were later dubbed ‘cyclicitarianism,’ proposed that the Earth was very slowly cooling.

In 1838, James. Hutton said that it was very likely that the planet was gradually cooling, and that it had been cooling for millions of years. By the end of the 19th. century, scientific opinion had turned decisively against any belief in a human influence on climate. And whatever the regional effects, few imagined that humans could affect the climate of the planet as a whole. The 18th and 19th Century conversion of Eastern North America from forest to croplands brought obvious change within a human lifetime. Many believed the transformation was altering the region’s climate—probably for the better. When farmers in America, dubbed “sodbusters’ took over the Great Plains, they held that “rain follows the plow’. Other experts disagreed, and some argued that deforestation caused rapid rainwater run-off and flooding, and could even result in reduced rainfall. Meanwhile, national weather agencies had begun to compile masses of reliable observations of temperature, rainfall, and the like. When these figures were analyzed, they showed many rises and dips, but no steady long-term change. The idea of uniform uniformity in weather patterns was among the first theories of modern times in times of climate change. It was among those who found signs of past glaciers warm for too long in modern times.