Sixty seven years ago, on this day, January 9th, 1957, The Daily Worker posed some questions, in the context of the International Geophysical Year, which was to begin six months hence.
“Can we predict earthquakes? Can dry spells be predicted in time to warn farmers? Is the earth warming up? Will the melting of ice caps and glaciers containing one per cent of the earth’s water, eventually submerge populated coastlines?”
Woods, P. 1957. Forty countries set to collaborate in a gigantic scientific experiment. Daily Worker, January 9, p.6.
The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was roughly 314ppm. As of 2024 it is 422ppm, but check here for daily measures.
The context was that two years previously, on January 2 1955, The Worker had posed similar questions.
Also, the International Geophysical Year was about to begin, it was well understood that the planet was warming. And that if it continued to do that, the ice caps would melt and that would have an impact on sea level rise. This was an empirical finding. People didn’t necessarily ascribe it to carbon dioxide build-up. But by the time the Daily Worker article appeared, there had been several articles in the mainstream press and some scientists speculating about the problem.
What we can learn as with January 2, left-wing papers had a view on environmental destruction and environmental issues. That perhaps belies or at least complicates the easy caricature of them as “industrialise, industrialised industrialise and worry about green stuff later.”
What happened next, the International Geophysical Year kicked off six months later. Accurate measurements of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere started to be taken in March of 1958. It quickly became apparent that the levels were indeed rising as had been suggested by Guy Callendar. That it was at that point that if the species had wanted to stick around for a few centuries, it would have started thinking about not burning fossil fuels. But there is no such thing as the species having a central organising committee, or even a body for discussing this. And so we blundered on thinking that the lunch we were eating was free. And those who tried to stop the blundering, were smeared, well, ignored, dismissed. And if they persisted, then they smeared and attacked, because that’s the way it works.
What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs.
Also on this day:
January 9, 1974 – The UK sets up a “Department of Energy”
Jan 9 1995 – “Efficiency” promises vs hated and feared regulation/taxation #Predatory Delay #auspol