By David Robb ——Bio and Archives--May 9, 2024

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Where is the truth? Is there really a crisis that demands a draconian response, or is the crisis a manufactured excuse to justify more control over our lives? The first chart below appears to answer that question.

This familiar chart shows two curves. The upper curve in red is a plot of CO2 measurements mostly by government observers atop Mauna Loa in Hawaii. The lower curve is the government's National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) estimates of the global temperature anomaly over time. The anomaly is just the difference between the estimated value and a reference value. Using the anomaly rather than the full temperature serves to emphasize trends, especially the rise in temperature.

The temperature anomaly in degrees C is shown in the scale on the left, while the CO2 concentration is shown on the right in parts per million (ppm).

Clearly, since the CO2 curve lies to the left of the temperature curve, one can see that rising CO2 causes a rise in temperature. This proves that increases in CO2 levels lead to increased temperature. The relationship is obvious and demonstrates that we need to curtail CO2 in order to prevent a catastrophic rise in temperature.

Or does it?

Look at the chart below, where the same data from the same sources is plotted.

Now the CO2 curve lies below and to the right of the temperature curve. What does that mean? We can clearly see that temperature was rising long before the reported rise in CO2. It would appear that the rising temperature is causing a rise in CO2 since the temperature rise happens first and then CO2 rises. Clearly this chart proves that a temperature rise causes a rise in CO2 levels.

How can it be that the same data supports two completely different conclusions? The answer is that neither chart "proves" anything.

The astute reader will notice that I changed the scales between the charts, increasing the amount of time shown, and changing the range of the CO2 value scale. These changes had the effect of causing the CO2 curve to be plotted below the temperature curve without actually changing any of the data values.

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Climate change activists are likely to cry "foul", claiming that I have simply changed how the data is presented in order to support a particular conclusion. In other words, I did the same thing they have done with the first chart, except that I am honest about it.........

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