Balanced News Blog

Is the Siberian permafrost melting? One researcher’s findings has resulted in an alarmist report in the Guardian (UK) stating categorically that it is, and that this melting will cause catestrophic ecological harm.

But don’t rush out screaming that the sky is falling just yet. Sharp eyes (and diligent researchers) at Jerry Pournelle’s Chaos Manor have noted that the report is not only based on one researcher’s findings, but that no other research has yet replicated these findings, and the researcher’s bona fides are very difficult to track down.

In short: need more facts. If the Siberian permafrost is melting for the first time in 11,000 years, why now, when temperatures in the region scarcely approach temperatures we know were worldwide during the Mander Minimum* during which time Greenland was green and had thriving agricultural settlements?

The Siberian permafrost may indeed be melting. But with the information currently in hand, alarmist shouts of “The sky is falling!” from such organs as The Guardian (UK) are less than useful.

*From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

The Maunder minimum in a 400 year history of sunspot numbers

The Maunder Minimum is the name given to the period roughly from 1645 to 1715 A.D., when sunspots became exceedingly rare, as noted by solar observers of the time. It is named after the later solar astronomer E.W. Maunder who discovered the dearth of sunspots during that period by studying records from those years.

another version of this story crossposted at third world county