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Old August 30th 04, 07:23 PM posted to sci.environment,sci.geo.meteorology,alt.global-warming,talk.environment
Eric Swanson Eric Swanson is offline
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First recorded activity by Weather-Banter: Nov 2003
Posts: 21
Default The Idsos' co2science web site has an error in the MSU data calculation page

I just noticed an error in the Idsos' co2science web site .

Their presentation of the data from Spencer and Christy's MSU LT is flawed.

http://www.co2science.org/temperatures/msu.htm

The web page allows one to calculate temperature trends between different
years and also between various combinations of latitude and longitude.
They list minimum and maximum latitudes as "-90" and "90". The problem
is that the MSU LT data is only available between 82.5S and 82.5N.

Try the calculation with the latitude range of -90 and -75. Then try it
between -90 and -85.

And, yes, I'm reasonably sure that they are using the S & C product, but
version D, which looks almost identical to the current version 5.1 of the LT
The calculated global trend between 1979 and 2003 is +0.080 deg C/decade
close to that from S & C's web sit, which was +0.082 deg C/dec.

While one is at it, notice the big positive spike in 1980 for the data between
latitudes -85 and -75. That spike propagates thru the Southern Hemisphere
poleward of 45S. To see it, look at the data between -90 and -45. I suggest
that this spike causes the trend calculated for the entire SH to be smaller
than it would be if that spike were found to be an error and removed from S
& C's data set. For a part of 1980, only one MSU was in orbit, that on
NOAA 6.

--
Eric Swanson --- E-mail address: e_swanson(at)skybest.com :-)
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