Albedo Effect

Well, the latest report from the IPCC has been released. It confirms the growing concensus amongst reputable scientists that global warming is real and that human activity is a contributing factor.

Global warming will affect all of us, and it will affect the poorest countries the most as I have discussed here.

One of the websites I enjoy is Realclimate.com where climate scientists discuss all the ins and outs of current science relating to climate, oceans, greenhouse gases, etc.

I enjoyed their April 1st posting on the hitherto unrecogised Albedo Effect announced in a press conference by Dr. Ewe Noh-Watt of the New Zealand Institute of Veterinary Climatology. Noh-Watt and his co-workers, describing work funded by a generous grant from the Veterinary Climate Science Coalition, declared "We have seen the future of climate – and it is Sheep."

Their hypothesis notes the strong correlation between the falling population of sheep in New Zealand and increasing global temperatures. The Albedo Effect accounts for the link – fewer sheep mean there is less white wool reflecting heat back from the planet. The result is global warming.

You need to read the whole article to appreciate the full joy of this scientific whimsy. The comments that follow the article are just as fun.

Still, after all the fun, the kids at St Jude’s will still grow up in a fragile world where their country, Tanzania, will suffer increasing drought and reduced farm productivity as world temperatures rise.

I encourage you to do your bit to give them a better education and a more secure future.




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