The Hottest Ever

Image Credit : NASA GISS

NASA GISS compute that the period January to May for 2010 has been the hottest ever on record.

Of course, the Sun is the ultimate cause of rising temperatures on Earth. The energy from the Sun is the driving force behind all the weather systems, ocean currents, wind storms and cloud activity.

But it’s the things you can’t see that are the most significant.

Sunspots are theorised to indicate energy output from the Sun, that has an impact on temperatures on Earth. Higher sunspot activity would point to higher levels of energy reaching Earth. But they’re down :-

ENSO scores point to an end to temperature-raising El Nino conditions in the Pacific Ocean :-

So what’s causing the rising temperatures on the Earth’s surface ? The enhanced Greenhouse Effect – burning Fossil Fuels for motorised transport energy and heating energy in homes and offices is increasing the amount of Carbon Dioxide in the atmosphere. And Carbon Dioxide is a significant Greenhouse Gas.

The ocean can’t take up Carbon Dioxide fast enough to compensate for the extra we’re pumping into the atmosphere :-