Open Letter to Dr. James Hansen (NASA GISS)

February 3, 2010

On January 22, 2010 you published a statement: “2009: Second warmest year on record” .  As we all know, the global average surface temperature is a sum of two quantities. One is the so-called effective temperature, determined by the available incoming energy (depending on the solar constant, planetary albedo [reflectivity] and internal heat sources as ocean-atmosphere heat exchange, industrial heat generation and so on), now about 255 Kelvin or minus 18 Celsius. The other is the greenhouse temperature, coming from the presence of infrared-active gases (H2O, CO2, methane, ozone, etc.) and clouds in the atmosphere, generally accepted as about 33 degrees Celsius. These two give up the known 288 K (+15 C) global average surface temperature.

Would you be so kind as to produce a separation of your temperature data, year by year, into the above mentioned two parts? This would show us whether Global Warming is happening in the effective, or in the greenhouse part of the global temperature.

After the results of Dr Ferenc Miskolczi, former NASA Langley Research Center senior research scientist, stated that the observed warming is happening in the effective temperature, while the greenhouse addition fluctuates around its 33C equilibrium value, showing no growing trend in the past half century.

The opportunity for such a project is given, as the White House said NASA will be directed to concentrate on Earth-science projects — principally, researching and monitoring climate change. We suggest here not to research and monitor the conventional climate change issue, but greenhouse effect itself.

Looking forward your answer,

Dr. Miklos Zagoni, Dianna C. Cotter

Budapest, Hungary; Portland, Oregon USA February 3, 2010