Hieronder leuk artikel in de Independent.
Als dit ff waar kon zijn
Britain 'May Face
Sudden Ice Age'
By Severin Carrell
The Independent - UK
8-17-03
Britain may be basking in one of the hottest summers on record, but
scientists now fear that the UK could face an abrupt switch to freezing
winters and Icelandic summers.
Leading global warming experts suspect that climate change, instead of being
a gradual and largely predictable process, could mean that Europe's weather
patterns will worsen severely with very little warning.
At any time after 2010, their research suggests, Britain's average
temperature could drop by up to 5C within as little as three or four years -
with catastrophic results for farming, transport, northern towns and
tourism.
That would leave Britain with the same average temperatures as Iceland, said
Professor Jochem Marotze, one of Europe's leading oceanographers. "It would
wreck agriculture the way we know it now," he said.
When southern Britain was sweltering with a record 38.1C (100.6F) last
Sunday, residents of Iceland's capital, Reykjavik, endured rain and a much
cooler 13C (55F).
Many scientists now believe that rapidly increasing CO2 emissions will
exacerbate the natural cycle of hot and cold weather that led to the mini
Ice Age of the 17th century by severely affecting natural ocean currents.
The natural cycle of hot and cold periods is chiefly responsible for this
summer's heatwave, say climatologists. However, global-warming gases are
very likely to have intensified its effects.
© 2003 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd
Als dit ff waar kon zijn
Britain 'May Face
Sudden Ice Age'
By Severin Carrell
The Independent - UK
8-17-03
Britain may be basking in one of the hottest summers on record, but
scientists now fear that the UK could face an abrupt switch to freezing
winters and Icelandic summers.
Leading global warming experts suspect that climate change, instead of being
a gradual and largely predictable process, could mean that Europe's weather
patterns will worsen severely with very little warning.
At any time after 2010, their research suggests, Britain's average
temperature could drop by up to 5C within as little as three or four years -
with catastrophic results for farming, transport, northern towns and
tourism.
That would leave Britain with the same average temperatures as Iceland, said
Professor Jochem Marotze, one of Europe's leading oceanographers. "It would
wreck agriculture the way we know it now," he said.
When southern Britain was sweltering with a record 38.1C (100.6F) last
Sunday, residents of Iceland's capital, Reykjavik, endured rain and a much
cooler 13C (55F).
Many scientists now believe that rapidly increasing CO2 emissions will
exacerbate the natural cycle of hot and cold weather that led to the mini
Ice Age of the 17th century by severely affecting natural ocean currents.
The natural cycle of hot and cold periods is chiefly responsible for this
summer's heatwave, say climatologists. However, global-warming gases are
very likely to have intensified its effects.
© 2003 Independent Digital (UK) Ltd
