wbug1 wrote:Jim,
The solar irradiation in watts per square meter, on average, is 342 W/sq meter and has been measured and hasn't varied much in the past 100 years. If the sun were to suddenly drop it's output (a little), then this would counter the effect and (as the previous poster said) allow a real good look at how much GHG's and the increased black body effect of human construction has on global temperatures.
La Nina, et al., is independent of incoming radiation, and overall energy input (warming) into the planet is solely a function of how much of the incoming radiation is absorbed into the atmosphere, oceans and land.
The IPCC report is basically a much more detailed explanation, backed by studies, of the above very simple physics and knowledge of the infrared absorption of CO2 and CH4.
I've done a little paint photo chopping, since I can't afford the real thing:
I'm surprised how close the angle matches.
Wbug1,
There's more to the space weather-climate connection then watts per square meter. And I am sorry but this type of conservative thinking is why the weather-climate community has never understood the possible relationship.
Solar Flaring, geomagnetic storms, magnetic field vectors, polarities, energetic particles, GCR's, etc.... all seem to be important. And my own PET Cycle discussion that I gave you a link touched based on some of this.
Here are a few research papers you might want to read up on if your interested in the subject matter. The last one is just a link to an article.
"Geoeffective factors of plasma solar streams"
http://fenyi.solarobs.unideb.hu/publ/Praga2002.pdf
"Solar wind electric field modulation of the NAO: A correlation analysis in the lower atmosphere"
http://www2.geog.ucl.ac.uk/~mtodd/paper ... _total.pdf
Hurricane intensity changes associated with geomagnetic variations"
http://garnet.acns.fsu.edu/~jelsner/PDF ... ov2001.pdf
"On the relationship between cosmic ray flux and precipitation"
http://www2.geog.ucl.ac.uk/~mtodd/paper ... _total.pdf
"Raining electrons contribute to ozone destruction"
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/20 ... 082423.htm