Weekly magazine “Arguments and Facts” No. 42. Supernumber: 152 answers to questions 20/10/2021
Is it true that the theory of global warming was specially invented to strengthen the dominance of developed countries and restrain the growth of competing countries, including Russia? What do scientists think about this?
The expert’s answer is 0 + –
Vladimir Semenov, Deputy Director of the Obukhov Institute of Atmospheric Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, answers:
There is such an opinion, but this is a misconception. The knowledge of climatologists is based on a huge amount of research. The conclusions are that due to the increase in the content of greenhouse gases, primarily CO2, the planet has warmed up by 1.3% since the beginning of the twentieth century. The first results in the field of greenhouse effect theory were obtained back in the XIX century, at that time there was no politicization of this problem. The most accurate quantitative estimates came in the 1960s and 1970s, when there was a decrease in temperature and there was talk of global cooling.
There is also an opinion that climatologists who talk about the anthropogenic factor are working against the interests of Russia, doing it with foreign grants. And those who claim the fallacy of this hypothesis are patriots. But this is also not the case. We, climatologists, know what is happening with the climate, we understand the consequences of warming, including for Russia. We have a northern country, and forin addition to negative consequences, there are also positive ones. We do not advocate turning headlong onto the rails of “green” energy. We are for the sustainable development of the country, but physics is physics. The causes of climate change should be discussed by competent experts in this field.
