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Judicial Watch Uncovers NASA Documents Related to Global Warming Controversy
NASA Scientists Go on Attack After Climate Data Error Exposed
| Source: Judicial Watch
WASHINGTON, DC--(Marketwire - January 14, 2010) - Judicial Watch, the public interest group
that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, announced today
that it has obtained internal documents from NASA's Goddard Institute for
Space Studies (GISS) related to a controversy that erupted in 2007 when
Canadian blogger Stephen McIntyre exposed an error in NASA's handling of
raw temperature data from 2000-2006 that exaggerated the reported rise in
temperature readings in the United States. According to multiple press
reports, when NASA corrected the error, the new data apparently caused a
reshuffling of NASA's rankings for the hottest years on record in the
United States, with 1934 replacing 1998 at the top of the list.
These new documents, obtained by Judicial Watch through the Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA), include internal GISS email correspondence as NASA
scientists attempted to deal with the media firestorm resulting from the
controversy. In one exchange GISS head James Hansen tells a reporter from
Bloomberg that NASA had not previously published rankings with 1998 atop
the list as the hottest year on record in the 20th century.
Email from Demien McLean, Bloomberg to Jim Hansen, August 14, 2007: "The
U.S. figures showed 1998 as the warmest year. Nevertheless, NASA has
indeed newly ranked 1934 as the warmest year..."
Email Response from James Hansen to Damien McLean, August 14, 2007: "...We
have not changed ranking of warmest year in the U.S. As you will see in
our 2001 paper we found 1934 slightly warmer, by an insignificant hair over
1998. We still find that result. The flaw affected temperatures only
after 2000, not 1998 and 1934."
Email from NASA Scientist Makiko Sato to James Hansen, August 14, 2007: "I
am sure I had 1998 warmer at least once on my own temperature web page..."
(Email includes temperature chart dated January 1, 2007.)
(This issue also crops up in email communications with New York Times
reporter Andrew Revkin a little over a week later.)
According to the NASA email, NASA's incorrect temperature readings resulted
from a "flaw" in a computer program used to update annual temperature data.
Hansen, apparently frustrated by the attention paid to the NASA error,
labeled McIntyre a "pest" and suggests those who disagree with his global
warming theories "should be ready to crawl under a rock by now." Hansen
also suggests that those calling attention to the climate data error did
not have a "light on upstairs."
"This email traffic ought to be embarrassing for NASA. Given the recent
Climategate scandal, NASA has an obligation to be completely transparent
with its handling of temperature data. Instead of insulting those who
point out their mistakes, NASA scientists should engage the public in an
open, professional and honest manner," stated Judicial Watch President Tom
Fitton.
Visit www.JudicialWatch.org to read the new documents obtained from NASA.