Sheep Albedo

Started by Amanda_931, April 17, 2007, 09:58:20 AM

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Amanda_931

Complete with lovely pictures and graphs.

http://www.realclimate.org/index.php/archives/2007/04/the-sheep-albedo-feedbacki/

The already-reeling "consensus" supposedly linking climate change to CO2 is about to receive its final coup-de-grace from a remarkable new result announced in a press conference today by Dr. Ewe Noh-Watt of the New Zealand Institute of Veterinary Climatology [1]. Noh-Watt and his co-workers, describing work funded by a generous grant from the Veterinary Climate Science Coalition, declared "We have seen the future of climate -- and it is Sheep." Prof. Jean-Belliere Poisson d'Avril, star student of Claude Allegro Molto-Troppo (discoverer of the Tropposphere) reacted with the words, "Parbleu! C'est la meilleure chose depuis les baguettes tranchées!"

The hypothesis begins with the simple observation that most sheep are white, and therefore have a higher albedo than the land on which they typically graze (see figure below). This effect is confirmed by the recent Sheep Radiation Budget Experiment. The next step in the chain of logic is to note that the sheep population of New Zealand has plummeted in recent years. The resulting decrease in albedo leads to an increase in absorbed Solar radiation, thus warming the planet. The Sheep Albedo hypothesis draws some inspiration from the earlier work of Squeak and Diddlesworth [2] on the effect of the ptarmigan population on the energy balance of the Laurentide ice sheet. Noh-Watt hastens to emphasize that the two hypotheses are quite distinct, since the species of ptarmigan involved in the Squeak-Diddlesworth effect is now extinct.
...............
"A real breakthrough was using the statistical technique pioneered by Frusen-Glädje and Haagendassen in their study of the solar-climate connection." said Noh-Watt "Just as in their case, to get a good match to the observed climate, we had to optimize our smoothing algorithm by smoothing some parts of the sheep record more than others, and then rescaling the results." The optimized smoothing was applied to the years 1975-1991. Noted skeptic Rasmus Benestad has criticized this technique as meaningless curve-bashing (see footnote [3] below), but according to Noh-Watt, " All these guys are interested in is getting rich by riding their bicycles to work and selling carbon credits to the EU."

(if you wonder, look up Poisson d'Avril.  I used to be able to get honey-flavored Fruzen-Gladje in the stores.  No more--in my areas at least)

fourx

I saw that study on Fruzen-Gladje recently published by Rutch, Thuck and Kremy, a NZ quality assesment team devoted to the examination of honey-flavored Fruzen-Gladje. Dr Ewe Noh-Watt is a renowned authority on such matters, and is never sheepish about coming forward with a new angle. Along with most New Zealand men, of course, he knows his sheep from front to back- mostly from the back, by all accounts.
Very interesting stuff, Amanda. Dr No-Watt is also a musician of note down here in the Antipodes, and has recently released a cover version ( along with his band, the Beastiality Boys) of the old Beach Boys hit, Barbera Ann.
"Too many pieces of music finish too long after the end."
- Igor Stravinsky


MountainDon

#2
I enjoyed that Amanda and Pete.  :)  

The answer to the problem lies in the last paragraph... "at the same time the number of sheep has been going down, the number of cows (which have a lower albedo than sheep) has been going up."

We need genetically altered white cows. Billions of them.

Plus we should all rush out and buy the largest white SUV we can find. Park them in your drive, never the garage. Your car insurance might cost more but isn't it worth it to save the planet?   :-/  If you can afford it also buy the biggest RV you can find, just make sure it's white.
Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.

fourx

#3
A great idea, Don- but why stop at livestock..? ..why not extend the concept to the human population? Black skin absorbes heat, of course, so a move toward all white will produce instant results. In the meantime, as the process takes effect, white folk can do their bit to speed up the process by wearing  white sheets over their clothes to increase reflection..it would be a simple matter to cut out eyeholes to make driving, etc, easy.
I think you may have tried this system a few decades back in the Southern states, Don...?
Always early adopters, you US folk. :)
"Too many pieces of music finish too long after the end."
- Igor Stravinsky

MountainDon

#4
QuoteAlways early adopters, you US folk. :)
We just didn't realize the future of climate was at stake.

I am going to petition my congressman and senator to press for the outlawing of any color roofing materials other than white.

As well, the outlawing of asphalt roads and parking lots would do wonders. Concrete with whiteners must be used in all new road construction. Once we get the formulation for the whitest of concrete down pat we should then pave over much of the vast SW USA.

You Aussie's could help a lot with paving over the Outback as well.

Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.


glenn kangiser

Possibly we could just have our Bush Mechanics slip into white coveralls with a white Aussie hat-- otherwise how will we learn to keep our cars running in the outback, Pete? :)
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

Please put your area in your sig line so we can assist with location specific answers.

fourx

...or perhaps a massive, non-stop white wedding, with reflective confetti?
You will have a few drums of the whitewash used on those responsible for the Iraq fiasco left over, I'm sure, Glenn- Green volunteers can paint the desert- we could have a national Wolfowitz Day, a national Rumsfeld Day....
"Too many pieces of music finish too long after the end."
- Igor Stravinsky

glenn kangiser

Only if they can be national war crimes trial days. :)
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

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benevolance

I would take off work close up the house and attend the trials personally if there ever was true justice in this country and Rumsfeld, Bush, Cheney were to be tried in a nuremburg like war trials...

I guess the only hope is for one of these guys to travel abroad and for someone to nab them....and refuse to release them...try them and convict them...

If someone like cheney in a year's time was foolish enough to travel abroad without 100 armed men protecting him...I think that he would be a target to be captured and put on trial....when you think about it...Internationally the world would gladly try and convict Cheney and Rumsfeld...Once Cheney was not the vice president America would not even start a war to get him back...

we can only hope at this point