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The global warming hypothesis states that emissions of carbon dioxide and other so-called greenhouse gases are causing the earth's atmosphere to heat up too much.
The hypothesis is the main justification given for the Kyoto Protocol by the latter's proponents.
The United Nations formed a climate panel (see IPCC) to gather scientific evidence to support the hypothesis.
Scientific bodies throughout the world have weighed in on the issue, but have split largely on political lines. When the Clinton administration controlled the EPA, the latter provided great public support for the hypothesis, publicly labelling carbon dioxide a "greenhouse gas" and a "pollutant" and prominently calling for mandatory reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
Other scientific bodies, as well as a few individual scientists and retired scientists, have pointed out what they see as serious or fatal flaws in the hypothesis (see global warming), some charging the UN's climate panel with deliberately concealing these flaws (see global warming controversy, IPCC controversy).
The hypothesis was the subject of a lecture delivered by Dr. Gordon McBean, Assistant Deputy Minister, Atmospheric Environment Service, to World Meteorological Organization 12th Congress, Geneva, June 16, 1995
Ideas discussed by Dr. McBean:
- "The hypothesis that changes in concentrations of greenhouse gases, such as water vapour and carbon dioxide, could cause global warming" (Tyndall, 1861)
- "a tripling of CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere could increase the average air temperature of the earth by about 8-9 C ." (Arrhenius, 1896)
- "The current projections are that a doubling of CO2 or equivalent, expected before the end of the next century, would cause an average equilibrium surface warming of 1.5 to 4.5 C." (McBean, 1995)