WIC-NOTE:

The matter is about warmer weather during recent decades, respectively about higher temperatures, which can be expressed in ‘warmer average weather statistics’, respectively more precisely: by statistics indicating higher temperature. From here to using a term ‘global warming’ in a clear and undoubtful manner requires further efforts.

Extract from Prof. Roger A. Pielke Sr’s text

Question by Whatisclimate

The terms climate change and global warming are often used interchangeably.

However, even within professional science organizations, there is confusion on the definitions of these terms.

This has resulted in the communication of climate change science to policymakers that are seriously flawed.

The different definitions of climate have done much to confuse policymakers in the discussion of climate science.

WIC: Which definition of ‘climate’ should be used?

WIC: Is R.A.P. aware of the quite meaningless AMS climate definition (“The slowly varying aspects of the atmosphere–hydrosphere–land surface system.”), and was that the reason for not referring to it?

The American Meteorological Society (AMS) definition of “climate change” [3]

See for details the file: A-114

The AMS defines the climate system

See for details the file: A-114

Here we have an inconsistency with the definition even by a very distinguished professional society! Climate, as defined by the AMS, is focused on the atmosphere, while the climate system consists of the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and biosphere. No wonder policymakers misapply this terminology.

WIC: Actually the claim of R.A.P is not fully correct, as AMS refers concerning climate to: the atmosphere–hydrosphere–land surface system; and concerning ‘climate system’ to: the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and biosphere. Nevertheless, the presentation of terms is inconsistent

Even more misleading is the use of the term "global warming" and "climate change" interchangeably. The AMS Glossary of Meteorology does not even include this term (see)!

WIC: Global weather consists of presumably several hundred elements, ditto-average weather, this includes the element: temperature. If the temperature change on a global basis one can call it ‘global warming’ but not ‘change of average weather’ (or climate change).

Global warming (or global cooling) means that heat content changes have occurred in the Earth’s climate system. The surface average temperature trend has been the traditional metric used to assess this heat content change (e.g. see the text in the 2005 National Research Council report that starts on page 19 ).

(Ca. one page text not reproduced)

The greater importance of heterogeneous aerosol and landscape human climate forcing relative to the more spatially homogeneous radiative forcing of added CO2 in terms of how atmospheric weather features are affected was documented in

Matsui, T., and R.A. Pielke Sr., 2006: Measurement-based estimation of the spatial gradient of aerosol radiative forcing . Geophys. Res. Letts., 33, L11813, doi:10.1029/2006GL025974.

These heterogeneous human climate forcings can occur with or without global warming, and appear to alter the climate system to the greater extent than does the radiative effect of CO2.

WIC asks:

Are anthropogenic induced aerosols and altered landscape, and increased CO2 are not only relevant on atmospheric physical dynamics, which will alter local, regional and global weather pattern? Is a reference to “human climate forcing” a non-explanation, which might even misleading?

WIC asks:

Why does R.A.P. puts forcing means in relation to ‘atmospheric weather features’ (which seems reasonable and correct approach), but thereon switches – without any explanation - these forcing matters to: “ heterogeneous human climate forcings”?

It is time for the assessment and policy communities and the media to recognize that an equivalence of global warming and climate change is erroneous. 

WIC agrees and asks:

How could it happen that a top scientist needed to raise this question in the year 2007, and many of his colleagues do neither listen, nor stopped using the terms interchangeable? Is that stupidity, or intention?