posted on Dec, 2 2004 @ 01:11 PM
The deadly hot summer of Europe, which killed more than twenty-five thousand people, could become a regular event, according to one study. Oeter Stott
of the Met Office's Hadley Centre, and Daithi Stone and Myles Allen, of Oxford University have simulated the temperatures for 2003 with and without
the consequences of our activities and found out that it was very highly likely that the extra heat of 2003 was because of greenhouse gases. If the
global warning is going to continue, these summers could occur as frequently as every two years.
news.independent.co.uk
Until now it has not been possible to say with any accuracy how much of this extra heat was the result of man-made global warming and how much of it
was the result of a naturally warm summer. But Peter Stott, of the Met Office's Hadley Centre, and Daithi Stone and Myles Allen, of Oxford
University, have found a way of teasing apart the human and natural influences on the temperatures measured across Europe in 2003. Using a computer
model of the climate, they found the extra heat that made the summer of 2003 the hottest for at least 500 years was largely the result of human
influences, such as the burning of fossil fuel which exacerbates the planet's greenhouse effect.
Dr Stott said: "We simulated 2003 summer temperatures over Europe, with and without the effect of man's activities, and compared these with
observations."
"We found that although the high temperature experienced was not impossible in a climate unaltered by man, it is very likely that greenhouse gases
have at least doubled the risk.
Please visit the link provided for the complete story.
Good thing is that the Kyoto pact is in order, but the bad thing is that U.S. didn't sign it.
Maybe if the global warming affects U.S. more directly, like the European summer of 2003, the White House will sign the deal.
[edit on 2-12-2004 by Banshee]