Arctic cyclone, as captured by a NASA satellite on July 28, 2020.
A Brief Primer on Global Warming
Revised March 21, 2025
Speaker Information
Photo of Vince Cronin: CroninProjects.org/Portraits/Cronin-Portrait-2019.jpg
Vince Cronin has studied, researched, taught, and worked as a geoscientist since 1975. He earned his doctorate through the Center for Tectonophysics at Texas A&M University in 1988. He is a licensed geologist in Texas and is a nationally certified professional geologist. For 34 years, he taught and mentored undergraduate and graduate students, at the University of Wisconsin and Baylor University. He is now an emeritus professor of geoscience. Vince is the author-editor of the most widely used laboratory textbook in physical geology and is the co-creator of its chapter on Earth’s dynamic climate. He is a charter member of the Tyler Chapter of NPSOT. https://CroninProjects.org/Vince
About the presentation
- Brief description (for flyers, etc.):
Earth’s warming climate affects its ecosystems. How do we know that Earth’s climate is warming? Why is it happening? What are some of the major consequences? What can we do about it? This brief primer on global warming can provide context for our efforts in NPSOT to protect and sustain Texas ecosystems for our descendants.
- The presentation is about 45-50 minutes long, not accounting for questions that might arise during the presentation. Dr. Cronin travels with a Macintosh laptop that can connect to an HDMI cable, and he will also have the presentation on a USB-A thumb disk. He does not travel with a projector, so the hosting chapter needs to provide that.
- Videos embedded in the presentation
- Video 1 (Slide 12), NASA Scientific Visualization Studio, 2025, Temperature Measurement Stations, accessible via https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4961/
- Video 2 (Slide 23), NASA Scientific Visualization Studio, 2024, Twelve consecutive months of global surface temperature records: 1880 to 2023: accessible via https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5311/
- Video 3 (Slide 25), NASA Scientific Visualization Studio, 2025, 2024 is the Warmest Year on Record: accessible via https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14743/
- Video 4 (Slide 79), NASA Scientific Visualization Studio, 2024, GRACE and GRACE-FO Observations of Polar Land Ice Mass Changes: accessible via https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/31166/
- Video 5 (Slide 81), Cronin, V.S., 2021, Does raising the temperature of water change its volume? Video for Pearson, Laboratory Manual in Physical Geology [12th edition], accessible via https://qrgo.page.link/Hd51t
- Video 6 (Slide 82), Cronin, V.S., 2021, Does sea level change when floating sea ice and icebergs melt? Video for Pearson, Laboratory Manual in Physical Geology [12th edition], accessible via https://qrgo.page.link/Mr42z
- Video 7 (Slide 83), Cronin, V.S., 2021, Does sea level change when continental ice sheets and glaciers melt? Video for Pearson, Laboratory Manual in Physical Geology [12th edition], accessible via https://qrgo.page.link/bhXHa
- Cronin, V.S., and Carpenter, M., 2021, Earth’s Dynamic Climate [Chapter 17] in Cronin, V.S., and Tasa, D., 2021, Laboratory Manual in Physical Geology [12th edition]: New York, Pearson Higher Education, p. 431-461, ISBN-13: 978-0-13-583697-2
Some Suggested Reading/Resources
- Mann, M., 2023, Our Fragile Moment — How lessons from Earth’s past can help us survive the climate crisis: New York, Public Affairs, Hachette Book Group, 306 p., ISBN-13: 978-1-5417-0289-9
- Johnson, A.E., and Wilkinson, K.K., [editors], 2020, All We Can Save — Truth, courage, and solutions for the climate crisis: New York, One World, Penguin Random House LLC, 422 p., ISBN 978-0-593-23708-3.
- Weart, S., 2024, The Discovery of Global Warming — A hypertext history of how scientists came to (partly) understand the problem of climate change: American Institute of Physics, https://history.aip.org/climate/index.htm
- PBS News, 2024, Climate change is shifting plant growth zones. Here's what to know for your garden this year: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/climate-change-is-shifting-plant-growth-zones-heres-what-to-know-for-your-garden-this-year
— USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, accessible via https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/pages/map-downloads
- Rich, N., and Steinmetz, G. 2018,
Losing Earth: The Decade We Almost Stopped Climate Change: New York Times Magazine
Some Relevant Video Resources from NASA
Internet Resources
- American Chemical Society, Climate Science Toolkit: https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/climatescience.html
- American Institue of Physics, History of how scientists came to (partly) understand the problem of climate change by Spencer Weart: https://history.aip.org/climate
- American Meteorological Society, State of the Climate: https://www.ametsoc.org/index.cfm/ams/publications/bulletin-of-the-american-meteorological-society-bams/state-of-the-climate/
- Climate Central, accessed 2023, The Coastal Risk Screening Tool: coastal.climatecentral.org
- NASA's Earth Observatory: www.earthobservatory.nasa.gov
- NASA Climate Change portal: climate.nasa.gov
- NASA information about orbital satellites that contribute to our understanding of global sea level (Jason 1, Jason 2, Jason 3, ICESat, ICESat-2, GRACE, GRACE-FO, Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich, SWOT, NASA-ISRO-SAR, Sentinel-6b): sealevel.nasa.gov/data/missions
- NASA information about the carbon cycle: www.earthobservatory.nasa.gov/features/CarbonCycle
- NASA information about sea-level rise: sealevel.nasa.gov/understanding-sea-level/key-indicators/global-mean-sea-level/200
- NASA GISS Surface Temperature Analysis (GISTEMP), version 4 from NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies: data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/
- NOAA Climate portal: www.noaa.gov/climate
- NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory at the Mauna Loa Observatory: www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/obop/mlo/
- NOAA data from the Mauna Loa Observatory showing trends in atmospheric CO2: www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/ccgg/trends/data.html
- NOAAA, accessed 2023, The Sea Level Rise Viewer: coast.noaa.gov/slr/#
- NOAA sea level trends: tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/sltrends/sltrends.html
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography information about the Argo Program: www.argo.ucsd.edu
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography CO2 portal: scrippsco2.ucsd.edu
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography atmospheric monitoring laboratory at the Mauna Loa Observatory: scripps.ucsd.edu/programs/keelingcurve/ and https://scrippsco2.ucsd.edu
- UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change: www.ipcc.ch
- UN Environment Programme, Emissions Gap Report 2019: www.unenvironment.org/resources/emissions-gap-report-2019
- USGS Sea Level Rise Data Viewer
explanation usgs.maps.arcgis.com/apps/Cascade/index.html?appid=668f6dc7014d45228c993302d3eab2f5
data viewer geoport.usgs.esipfed.org/terriaslc/
- U.S. Global Change Research Program: www.globalchange.gov and its library of online reports at https://globalchange.gov/reports
- U.S. Global Change Research Program, Fifth National Climate Assessment: https://nca2023.globalchange.gov
- U.S. Global Change Research Program, Fourth National Climate Assessment, Executive Summary, Volume 1: science2017.globalchange.gov/chapter/executive-summary
- U.S. Global Change Research Program, Fourth National Climate Assessment, Volume 1: science2017.globalchange.gov
- U.S. Global Change Research Program, Fourth National Climate Assessment, Summary Findings, Volume 2: nca2018.globalchange.gov/#sf-1
- U.S. Global Change Research Program, Fourth National Climate Assessment, Volume 2: nca2018.globalchange.gov
Books
- Alley, Richard B., 2000, The Two-Mile Time Machine -- Ice Cores, Abrupt Climate Change, and Our Future: Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 239 p.
- Bolin, B., 2007, A History of the Science and Politics of Climate Change -- The Role of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 277 p.
- Broeker, W., 2010, The Great Ocean Conveyor -- Discovering the Trigger for Abrupt Climate Change: Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 154 p.
- Charney, J.G., Study Group Chairman, 1979, Carbon Dioxide and Climate: A Scientific Assessment: Washington DC, National Academies Press, https://doi.org/10.17226/12181, https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/12181/carbon-dioxide-and-climate-a-scientific-assessment
- Cronin, T.M., 2009, Paleoclimates -- Understanding Climate Change Past and Present: Columbia University Press, New York, 441 p.
- Fagan, B., 2000, The Little Ice Age -- How Climate Made History 1300-1850: Basic Books, New York, 246 p.
- Fagan, B., 2004, The Long Summer -- How Climate Changed Civilization: Basic Books, New York, 284 p.
- Gautier, C., 2008, Oil, Water, and Climate -- An Introduction: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 366 p.
- Mann, M.E., and Kump, L.R., 2009, Dire Predictions -- Understanding Global Warming: DK Publishing, New York, 208 p.
- Mims, F.E., III, 2012, Hawai'i's Mauna Loa Observatory -- Fifty Years of Monitoring the Atmosphere: University of Hawai'i Press, Honolulu, 461 p.
- Murray-Wallace, C.V., and Woodroffe, C.D., 2014, Quaternary Sea-Level Changes -- A Global Perspective: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 484 p.
- Neuendorf, K.K.E., Mehl, J.P., Jr., and Jackson, J.A., 2011, Glossary of Geology [5th edition, revised]: Alexandria, Virginia, American Geosciences Institute, 800 pp.
- Nierenberg, W.A., Committee Chairman, 1983, Changing Climate -- Report of the Carbon Dioxide Assessment Committee: Washington, D.C., National Academy Press, doi 10.17226/18714, https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/18714/changing-climate-report-of-the-carbon-dioxide-assessment-committee
- Oreskes, N., and Conway, E.M., 2014, The Collapse of Western Civilization -- A View from the Future: Columbia University Press, New York, 92 p.
- Revelle, Roger, and Hans E. Suess, 1957, Carbon Dioxide Exchange between Atmosphere and Ocean and the Question of an Increase of Atmospheric CO2 During the Past Decades: Tellus, v. 9, p. 18-27.
- Richter, B., 2010, Beyond Smoke and Mirrors--Climate Change and Energy in the 21st Century: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 226 p.
- Ruddiman, W.F., 2014, Earth's Climate, Past and Future [3rd edition]: W.H. Freeman & Co., New York, 445 p.
- Ruddiman, W.F., 2005, Plows, Plagues & Petroleum--How Humans Took Control of Climate: Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 202 p.
- Sverdrup, H.U., Johnson, M.W., and Fleming, R.H., 1942, The Oceans--Their Physics, Chemistry, and General Biology: Prentice-Hall, New York, 1087 p., https://publishing.cdlib.org/ucpressebooks/view?docId=kt167nb66r
- Weart, S.R., 2008, The Discovery of Global Warming: Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 230 p.
Published Papers or Book Chapters
- Bazin, L., and 21 others, 2013, An optimized multi-proxy, multi-site Antarctic ice and gas orbital chronology (AICC2012) 120-800 ka: Climates of the Past, v. 9, p. 1715-1731, doi:10.5194/cp-9-1715-2013.
- Camuffo, D., and Bertolin, C., 2012, The earliest temperature observations in the world — the Medici Network (1654-1670): Climatic Change, v. 111, p. 335-363, accessible via https://www.academia.edu/7819198/The_earliest_temperature_observations_in_the_world_the_Medici_Network_1654_1670_
- Chambers, D.P., Cazenave, A., Champollion, N., Dieng, H., Llovel, W., Forsberg, R., von Schuckmann, K., and Wada, Y., 2017, Evaluation of the Global Mean Sea Level Budget between 1993 and 2014: Surveys of Geophysics, v. 38, p. 309-327, doi:10.1007/s10712-016-9381-3.
- Graven, H., Keeling, R.F., and Rogelj, J., 2020, Changes to Carbon Isotopes in Atmospheric CO2 Over the Industrial Era and Into the Future: Global Biogeochemical Cycles, v. 34, no. 11, accessible via https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2019GB006170
- Hansen, J., Sato, M., Russell, G., and Kharecha, P, 2013, Climate sensitivity, sea level and atmospheric carbon dioxide: Philosophical Transactions of The Royal Society A, v. 371: 2012.0294, http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsta.2012.0294.
- Jouzel, J., and 31 others, 2007, Orbital and millennial Antarctic climate variability over the past 800,000 years: Science, v. 317, p. 793-796, doi:10.1126/science.1141038.
- Keeling, C.D., Piper, S.C., Bacastow, R.B., Wahlen, M., Whorf, T.P., Heimann, M., and H. A. Meijer, H.A., 2005, Atmospheric CO2 and 13CO2 exchange with the terrestrial biosphere and oceans from 1978 to 2000: observations and carbon cycle implications, in Ehleringer, J.R., Cerling, T.E., and Dearing, M.D., [eds], A History of Atmospheric CO2 and Its Effects on Plants, Animals, and Ecosystems: Springer Verlag, New York, p. 83-113.
- Kreemer, C., Hammond, W.C., and Blewitt, G., 2018, A robust estimation of the 3-D intraplate deformation of the North American plate from GPS: Journal of Geophysical Research—Solid Earth, v. 123, p. 4388-4412, https://doi.org/10.1029/ 2017JB015257.
- Laskar, J., Fienga, A., Gastineau, M., and Manche, H., 2011, La2010 -- A new orbital solution for the long-term motion of the Earth: Astronomy and Astrophysics, v. 532, A89.
- Laskar, J., Robutel, P., Joutel, F., Gastineau, M., Correia, A.C.M., and Levrard, B., 2004, A long term numerical solution for the insolation quantities of the Earth: Astronomy and Astrophysics, v. 428, p. 261-285, doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20041335.
- Lenssen, N., Schmidt, G., Hansen, J., Menne. M., Persin, A., Ruedy, R., and Zyss, D., 2019, Improvements in the GISTEMP uncertainty model: Journal of Geophysical Research - Atmospheres, v. 124, no. 12, p. 6307-6326, doi:10.1029/2018JD029522.
- Lisiecki, L.E., and Raymo, M.E., 2005, A Pliocene-Pleistocene stack of 57 globally distributed benthic δ18O records: Paleoceanography, v. 20, PA1003, doi:10.1029/2004PA001071.
- Loulergue, L., and 9 others, 2008, Orbital and millennial-scale features of atmospheric CH4 over the past 800,000 years: Nature, v. 453, p. 383-386, doi:10.1038/nature06950.
- Lüthi, D., and 10 others, 2008, High-resolution carbon dioxide concentration record 650,000-800,000 years before present: Nature, v. 453, p. 379-382, 15 May 2008.
- MacFarling Meure, C., Etheridge, D., Trudinger, C., Steele, P., Langenfelds, R., van Ommen, T., Smith, A., and Elkins, J., 2006: The Law Dome CO2, CH4 and N2O Ice Core Records Extended to 2000 years BP: Geophysical Research Letters, vol. 33(14), L14810 10.1029/2006GL026152.
- Marcott, S.A., Shakun, J.D., Clark, P.U., and Mix, A.C., 2013, A reconstruction of regional and global temperature for the past 11,300 years: Science, v. 339, p. 1198-1201, doi:10.1126/science.1228026. Supplemental material accessible via https://science.sciencemag.org/content/suppl/2013/03/07/339.6124.1198.DC1
- Morlighem, M., and 31 others, 2017, BedMachine v3 -- Complete bed topography and ocean bathymetry mapping of Greenland from multibeam echo sounding combined with mass conservation: Geophysical Research Letters, v. 44, p. 11,051–11,061, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017GL074954.
- Veres, D., and 15 others, 2013, The Antarctic ice core chronology (AICC2012) -- an optimized multi-parameter and multi-site dating approach for the last 120 thousand years: Climates of the Past, v. 9, p. 1733-1748, doi:10.5194/cp-9-1733-2013.
If you have any questions or comments about this site or its contents, drop an email to
Vince_Cronin(at)CroninProjects.org.
