Why the IPA's claim global warming is natural is 'junk science' | Graham Readfearn

An Institute of Public Affairs-sponsored journal article has been seized on by conservative media outlets. But there are a few problems

People who work for climate science denial thinktanks tend not to spend all that much time worrying about getting stuff into scientific journals.

Perhaps because it’s easier, people who are paid to tell the public and policy makers that human-caused climate change is overblown bunk would rather pump out newspaper columns, do softball interviews or push out their own self-published reports. There’s a lot less scrutiny in that kind of public relations.

Related: Coal in decline: an energy industry on life support

Related: Coal in decline: Adani in question and Australia out of step

The analysis by the authors seems to work like magic

In reality there a very few periodic or quasi-periodic oscillations in the Earth system. In reality most are random and not periodic. Volcanoes are the biggest issue. Their method assumes that any periodicity caused by volcanoes prior to 1880 has simply continued though to 2000. We know this is not the case and have a good handle on what volcanic activity has been – it was nothing like it was prior to 1880. Their approach is therefore completely unphysical. They also assume that oscillations seen at a given proxy location will also cause the same oscillation on global average or hemispheric average temperatures. We know this is not the case.

Related: 'They're insatiable': Jay Weatherill on his clash with the Coalition on energy – Australian politics live podcast

Related: Victoria moves to become first state to enshrine renewable energy targets in law