Memo: Examining the Recent "Pause" in Global Warming
"Global surface temperatures have warmed more slowly over the past decade than previously expected. The media has seized this warming pause in recent weeks, and the UK’s Met Office released a three-part series of white papers looking at the causes and implications. While there is still no definitive cause identified, some researchers point to a combination of more heat going into the deep oceans and downturns in multi-decadal cycles in global temperature as the primary drivers of the pause. Others argue that a plethora of recent small volcanoes, changes in stratospheric water vapor, and a downturn in solar energy reaching the earth may also be contributing to the plateau. While few expect the pause to persist much longer, it has raised some questions about the growing divergence between observed temperatures and those predicted by climate models." Read more...
