Slashdot Mirror
'Detergent' Hydroxl Molecules May Affect Methane Levels In The Atmosphere (caltech.edu)
An anonymous reader quotes Caltech's announcement about the results of a study funded by NASA and the Department of Energy:
During the early 2000s, environmental scientists studying methane emissions noticed something unexpected: the global concentrations of atmospheric methane -- which had increased for decades, driven by methane emissions from fossil fuels and agriculture -- inexplicably leveled off. The methane levels remained stable for a few years, then started rising again in 2007... New modeling by researchers at Caltech and Harvard University suggests that methane emissions might not have increased dramatically in 2007 after all. Instead, the most likely explanation has less to do with methane emissions and more to do with changes in the availability of the hydroxyl radical, which breaks down methane in the atmosphere... If global levels of hydroxyl decrease, global methane concentrations will increase -- even if methane emissions remain constant, the researchers say...
Tracking decadal trends in both methane and hydroxyl, Christian Frankenberg and his colleagues noted that fluctuations in hydroxyl concentrations correlated strongly with fluctuations in methane... "Think of the atmosphere like a kitchen sink with the faucet running," Frankenberg explains. "When the water level inside the sink rises, that can mean that you've opened up the faucet more. Or it can mean that the drain is blocking up. You have to look at both."
So what's changing the level of hydroxl in the atmosphere? The researchers say they have no idea.
Tracking decadal trends in both methane and hydroxyl, Christian Frankenberg and his colleagues noted that fluctuations in hydroxyl concentrations correlated strongly with fluctuations in methane... "Think of the atmosphere like a kitchen sink with the faucet running," Frankenberg explains. "When the water level inside the sink rises, that can mean that you've opened up the faucet more. Or it can mean that the drain is blocking up. You have to look at both."
So what's changing the level of hydroxl in the atmosphere? The researchers say they have no idea.
Perhaps they're being eaten by an Aloxotyl?
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
and therefore there's no reason to study this.
Armchair comment, but you know what happened shortly after 2007? The housing crisis.
What probably really happened is that a bunch of industries curbed their production for a few years before coming back up to full power.
Some recent research points to the air-water interface in clouds as an unexpected Hydroxyl source: https://www.chemistryworld.com...
Why are we wasting tax dollars on these fake news "studies"? These groups are not profitable and only seek to increase regulations that harm businesses and our national economy.
It just makes good business sense to defund these, Mr. President! #MAGA
sadness And it Was
So hat we have is more evidence that the earth tends to regulate itself. The Warmists blame methane for some global warming, and indeed methane is a powerful warming gas; the warmists just want to blame CO2 more because cattle do not emit CO2.
don't care for the L
Finally some scientists that have the guts to say that they don't know why something is happening! Rejoice! These days too many scientific "research" comes with an attached agenda which often leave one speculating about cherry picked data.
The best science comes when you don't know the answer in advance. Hydroxyl concentration model: maybe it's the key to solving our AGW prediction issues. Maybe it won't. But either way it should improve our understanding of the problem.
Full disclosure: I personally feel the whole methane issue is under reported in this whole climate change debate and too much emphasis is on CO2. Especially the methane calthrates under the ocean. Maybe this will improve our understanding of the methane cycle.
Ban soap.
Sources of volatile hydroxils include fermentation and plant respiration. The authors did not say "they have no idea", they said they do yet have a mechanistic explanation. They clearly have some ideas and those ideas are related to the differences between the tropics and the rest of the planet and they are all calling for more studies on specifically this.
"However, the authors do not yet have a mechanistic explanation for the last decade's global changes in hydroxyl concentrations. Future studies are needed to investigate this further, Frankenberg says. The researchers also would like to see the trends they detected verified with a more detailed study of both methane sources and sinks."
The spelling mistake in the headline may have had readers scratching their heads wondering what "hydroxl" is and trying to look it up on Wikipedia. (It isn't there.) The correct spelling is "hydroxyl" and the molecule is called the "hydroxyl radical". The Wikipedia article is actually very good and informative.
If I can be modded down for being a troll, can I be modded up for being an orc, or a balrog?
And admit they don't know everything about how the climate works? Why not just say `look there are 7 billion people on the planet. We are probably affecting the climate somehow` Instead they parade their scientific conclusions that change weekly through the media and insist that anyone who does not believe everything they say is anarchist racist homophic faggot who want to kill babies.
FUCK SCIENCE
We'll be back to river water in no time.
... and I feel fiiiiiinnnnneeee!
The hydroxyl radical program was classified because the political stance was carbon taxes to solve the issue. Reality vs. politics.
Politics: many, blood sucking insects.