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No course on climate science would be complete without explaining and discussing Ice Ages. Even though no one alive today will experience one (thank God for that I say) it is sobering to realize that it is undoubtedly our ultimate fate and what we are experiencing today is all small stuff in comparison.
Lesson 23. Causes of (1) Catastrophic Cooling, (2) Ice Ages.
Topics: Causes of Catastrophic Cooling, Sudden Climate Change, What was The Younger Dryas?, Supporting Evidence, What Caused It?, Conclusion - Cause Unknown but Possibly Solar Fluctuations, New Theory 2020, Asteroid Collisions, Massive Volcanic Eruptions, Causes of Ice Ages - Theories and Conflicting Facts, Milankovitch Cycles Description, Weaknesses in the Orbital Theory of Ice Age Duration, The 100k Year Ice Age Myth, Evidence for the Obliquity Theory
Summary: Even though they're never on anybody's mind until they happen, we could have a massive volcanic eruption at any time and with very little warning which could devastate the Earth and threaten our existence. Even more so with a stray asteroid. Even though we would have more warning, a fat lot of good it would do. But we could always go down on bended knees, put our head between our legs and kiss our arse good bye. What we do know for certain though is that we are heading for another Ice Age. This is the first of 5 Lessons on that topic.
Lesson 24. Cycles within Ice Ages, Timing, Onset.
Topics: Dansgaard-Oerschger (D-O) Cycles, Heinrich Events, The Bipolar Seesaw, Possible Causes of D-O Cycles, The Mechanism of the Dansgaard-Oeschger Cycle, Theories Features and Analysis, The Salt Oscillator Hypothesis, The Lunisolar Tidal Hypothesis, The Next Ice Age, Timing and Onset, When will the Next Ice Age Start?, Effects on the Planet, Effects on Life on Earth, Earthshock Book, The Weather Machine Book, Javier from Judith Curry's Website, Other Opinions, How Glaciers and Ice Sheets Form and Grow, Glaciers and Ice Sheets that Form from Snowtraps, Ice Sheets that Form by Snowblitz, Mistaken Complacency on the Speed of the Onset, How it Starts, The First Two Years, The First Five Years
Summary: Not nice. The Western World is currently in a spin about a small, routine increase in temperature. Unfortunately we don't know what we are in for when the cold arrives. And it will. None of us will be here to see it and we can thank our lucky stars for that. But it will come, and when it does, the onset will be much quicker than anyone could anticipate and prepare for.
Lesson 25. The Next Ice Age - Effects of Life on Earth.
Topics: Effects on the Planet, Gradual Takeover by Ice Sheets, Other Effects, Other (More Complacent) Opinions, Effect on Life on Earth, What Happened Last Time, Isolation and Death from, Inability to Grow Sufficient Food, Local Effects, Global Effects, Collapse of Many Countries, Food & Fertile-Territory Wars, Drastically Reduced Population, Surviving & Preserving Civilisation, Preparing for the Worst, The Ideal Solution.... , ....And What is Necessary to Make it Happen
Summary: Not much to say here. The ultimate Dystopian Earth scenario. The Day after Tomorrow writ large.
Lesson 26. The Next Ice Age - On a Lighter Note.
Topics: Surviving on your own in the Upcoming Ice Age, Can CO2 Stop it Happening? Ice Age Cycles Caused by Sun plus Carbon Dioxide, Global Warming Could Stave off Next Ice Age for 100,000 Years, Three Other More Interventionist Views from the Quora Forum, Debunking these Breathtakingly False and Misleading Assertions, The True Reasons Behind it All, A Glimpse into the Future
Summary: I cannot believe the Australian ABC would be so naive and stupid as to give serious air time to a preposterous theory that increasing CO2 could prevent the next Ice Age. But they are and they did, as you will read shortly. The Course concludes with some comments from me and an entertaining (I hope) short science fiction story written by yours truly that may or may not be prophetic.
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