Earth's Future Climate

by Henry Willis

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1932047921
• ISBN13: 9781932047929
• Release Date: January 2002
• Publisher: Llumina Press
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.56 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.1" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

A Must Read Book

The eBook version of this book is well thought out. The bookmarks permit an immediate jump to any one of the chapters in the book.It is my opinion that the subject of this book should be of concern to all. Too often today we receive "sound bites" through our news media that do not provide an accurate description of the facts. This book is a rare exception.The balanced discussion provided allows the informed reader to make his or her decision regarding the subject of global warming and global climate change. What I like about this book is the fact that Henry Willis does not buy into the accepted theories currently being spouted about global warming. Rather, he presents a viable discussion of facts, weather predictability, and the true cause for global climate change.

Short but great overview of climate change

I heard Mr. Willis on a talk show a couple of months ago. Thehost, who himself had co-authored a book on rapid climate change, claimed that by reading "Earth's Future Climate" in a "couple of hours," one could become fairly well acquainted with the subject. I got the book,and while I don't exactly agree that it only takes a few hours, I absolutely concur that this short, highly-readable book, is an excellent overview of the very complex subject of climate change and prediction. Indeed it does only take a few hours to read, but I had a very limited background on many of the subjects covered, so I've read it about 3 times. After the third read I feel that I indeed have a decent overview. The author covers quite a bit of material in each of the short chapters, yet succinctly, and writes in a very friendly manner, wanting the reader to "get it," despite the many complexities. And most importantly, he seems to back up all of his contentions with good science. Mr. Willis' main contention is that while we are in a warming period,it is not due to mankind's increasing use of greenhouse gases. He positsthat the earth's climate goes in cycles of mostly ice ages, followed by warmer cycles. In fact we are on the rebound of what is known as "The Little Ice Age,"which occurred after another cycle of warm temperatures before the Renaissance. This cold cycle, along with devastating diseases, ravaged the earth's population, and ended around 1900. Mr Willis traces many rounds of Ice Ages and warming periods, going back thousands and millions of years, using ice cores, which he calls "time machines" (Ch. 17, very interesting). Analysing the chemical content (using oxygen) of ice cores tell scientists very much about what the earth's climate is at a given time. What causes these cycles? Well, prior to the Industrial Revolution mankind couldn't have been a cause, so what he claims is that the cycleshave to do with sunspot cycles, which come in 11-year cycles themselves,but their effect is in fact more pronounced during the height of the Gleibsser Period (70-90 years). We are in a period of rapid global warming now (c. 2002) because we are at the height of a Gleibsser Period. There are also interesting discussions of much larger cycles, like the Milankovich cycle. One of themes of the book is that "correlation is not causation." Theauthor feels that even though there are undoubted signs of global warming (GW), the correlation between increased greenhouse gases and GW is simply not proven scientifically. On p. 110 a "meticulously conducted study by two Danish scientists" is cited, which claims with a "probability of 84.6%" thatGW is caused by sunspot cycles. This of course flatly contradicts the web site of the Union of Concerned Scientists, one of his references: "the warming effect due to increases of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is estimated to be more than 8 times greater than the effect of solar irradiance." I guess each will have to make up his/her own mind

Great introduction to paleoclimate basics

Earth's Future Climate, by Henry Willis, is a great introduction to paleoclimate basics for the layperson. Using everyday language, the reader quickly moves from the beginning of time to present day weather; getting a feel for the wide variety of factors contributing to today's climate. The historical data is discussed, as well as a quick and clear explanation on how to read the paleoclimate data.The paleoclimate data reveals how the Earth's past climate went from warm to Ice Age conditions in 3 to 5 years according to emerging scientific theories. Henry Willis is well organized in his presentation and as a result Terracycles recommends Earth's Future Climate as an introduction to paleoclimate concepts.

Outstanding Book!!!

This is one of the very best books I've read on the subject of global climate change. It is well-researched and written in an easy to read style. If you want to know all the arguments surround the question of global climate change, this book is a must read.