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While the UN, the ICCP and the WWF are calling world leaders to make all the necessary efforts to reach an agreement on greenhouse gases reduction at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change which will be held in Copenhagen in December (read Global Warming In The Arctic Above All Predictions), some scientists still dare to express opinions that conflict with the prevailing scientific opinion.

Last week, Henrik Svensmark published in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten an article titled "Mens Solen sover" (in English : "While the Sun Sleeps") in which he writes:

"In fact, global warming has stopped and a cooling is beginning. No climate model has predicted a cooling of the Earth – quite the contrary. And this means that the projections of future climate are unreliable"

You can read the full article translated in English on Watts Up With That? website.

Not a new comer into the global warming controversy, Henrik Svensmark is a physicist at the Danish National Space Center who think that solar activity is the main contributor to climate change and that the greenhouse gases emissions only account for a small part.

His theory establishes a link between solar magnetic field, cosmic rays and clouds formation, clouds having a strong influences on how the Earth heats and cools.

"When the Sun is active, its magnetic field is better at shielding us against the cosmic rays coming from outer space, before they reach our planet. By regulating the Earth’s cloud cover, the Sun can turn the temperature up and down. High solar activity means fewer clouds and a warmer world. Low solar activity and poorer shielding against cosmic rays result in increased cloud cover and hence a cooling. As the Sun’s magnetism doubled in strength during the 20th century, this natural mechanism may be responsible for a large part of global warming seen then.

That also explains why most climate scientists try to ignore this possibility. It does not favour their idea that the 20th century temperature rise was mainly due to human emissions of CO2. If the Sun provoked a significant part of warming in the 20th Century, then the contribution by CO2 must necessarily be smaller.

Ever since we put forward our theory in 1996, it has been subjected to very sharp criticism, which is normal in science."

Want more information on Cosmic rays and cloud formation? CLOUD is an experiment that uses a cloud chamber to study the possible link between galactic cosmic rays and cloud formation. Based at the Proton Synchrotron at CERN, this is the first time a high-energy physics accelerator has been used to study atmospheric and climate science; the results could greatly modify our understanding of clouds and climate.