Data the key to the climate change debate : Part 2

December 9 2009
by Ed

As the thinking world watches the activities in Copenhagen rather than the latest news of Tiger Woods, the value of making climate change data more accessible a point I made last week, is gaining some momentum.

This week the UK’s Met Office released a subset of HadCRUT data-set, just about the most comprehensive data-set of historic climate data. Already  John Graham-Cumming yes he of The Geek Atlas fame, is working on analysing and visualising the data.

Yes early days, but a confirmation of the value of making this information accessible..

Written and Submitted from the Googleplex (37.426N, 122.070W)

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3 Comments leave one →
2009 December 12
Dan Cookson permalink

I had also felt reassured that the Met were releasing unadjusted historic data. It appears though that this is not the raw temperature data, but the homogenized processed data which will only reaffirm their models.

shttp://chiefio.wordpress.com/2009/12/10/met-office-uea-cru-data-release-polite-deception/

Google have very clearly made up their mind on the climate science – have you?

Cheers
Dan

2009 December 12
Ed permalink

Hi Dan,

As someone that studied climatology many moons ago as an undergraduate, I know our climate is changing as is always has done, so I have no doubts about climate change, and I think there is little doubt that we appear to be in a warming phase, there appears to be considerable physical evidence to support this.

I am mostly convinced that this warming is due to human activity, although I have a few more doubts about this I think we should side on the side of caution and aim for a lower carbon economy.

ed

2010 January 4
Stuart Grant permalink

We’ve imported this data set into a web services platform that allows it to be browsed and visualised via Google Maps. Take a look at http://geo.me/climate and see what you think.

It’s a starting point, but it’s good to see data like this released. Handing raw data and the means to analyse it to the public may be a way to improve the debate and (as another contributor mentioned) could throw up some useful insights. After all, it’s going to cost us all one way or another, whether ‘wasting’ money on carbon controls or dealing with catastrophe.

cheers
Stuart

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