Earth station:

Mauna Loa mountain top

The graph below displays a 44 year measurement of carbon dioxide

60 percent increase in those years over the base year of 1958

1.36% average yearly increase over four decades, is now closer to 1.7 to 2 percent per year.

IPCC findings | earth change monitoring | long term monitoring | close to home | atmosphere

Charles David Keeling, noted JIMO researcher, was awarded the National Medal of Science in a White House
presentation on 13 June 2002 for his lifetime achievement in scientific research. His significant studies of the
carbon cycle and the increase of atmospheric CO2, have been a pivotal marker in the study of global climate
change. Keeling's scientific contributions have affected the scientific, economic and social challenges which
confront us today and well into the future.

Keeling was the first to model the accumulation of atmospheric carbon dioxide. The "Keeling curve" (Figure)
encapsulates 45 years of time of series measurements of atmospheric carbon dioxide taken atop Mauna Loa,
Hawaii. His data confirmed that the increased accumulation of carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuels
and other industrial products, contributed to the greenhouse effect. Under Keeling's current JIMO research,
which is a continuum of his lifetime study of the global carbon cycle, he is developing measurement techniques
in analyzing Ar/N2 ratios.

The "Keeling Curve" confirms a steady increase in carbon dioxide levels
contributing to the greenhouse effect.

Besides his interests in atmospheric chemistry and geochemistry, his comprehensive study of the effects of tidal
mixing on climate change spans a 1,000-year period. According to Keeling, strong oceanic tides are the engines
behind the warming-cooling cycle that may help determine future climate change.

Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Keeling received his B. A. degree in chemistry from the University of Illinois in
1948 and a Ph.D. in chemistry from Northwestern University in 1954. Keeling joined the Scripps Institution of
Oceanography in 1956. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Geophysical
Union, the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences, and the National Academy of Sciences.

• Prairie types in North America as an example of anticipated responses due to loss of soil moisture, irregular precipitation and temperature changes
• The Vostock ice cores have been analyzed for atmospheric CO2 content over the last 1000 years. They show fairly steady CO2 levels until the time of large-scale industrialization. The dashed portion of the curve is the Keeling curve from above.

Links

United States Geological Survey, USGS information

Pew Center for Global Climate Change

http://astro.wsu.edu/worthey/earth/html/md-climate.html

Earth observatory by NASA