Note to the Observent

Bunnies may notice that the tag line above has been changed and the give to save the Keeling curve link removed.  There are two reasons for this.

First, thanks in part to you, maybe a little to Eli, funding for the Scripps program has been saved.  As Ralph Keeling writes:

The Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego O2 and CO2 programs have received funding from multiple sources that put these operations on a relatively secure footing for the next few years. Support for the Scripps CO2 program has come in from three significant sources: Eric and Wendy Schmidt, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF). The O2 program has received a new line of support from National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which also operates the Mauna Loa Observatory where Keeling Curve measurements are made. 

People around the world have also taken it upon themselves to support ongoing Keeling Curve measurements. A crowdsourcing campaign was effective in communicating the importance of the project and has helped us meet our operational needs. I’m very, very grateful for all the great support that continues to come from members of the public who demonstrate that they care about preserving careful long-term observations of nature.

Second, today, the American Chemical Society is dedicating a plaque at Scripps, designating the Keeling Curve as a National Chemical Historical Landmark 

The ceremony to unveil a plaque marking the National Historic Chemical Landmark designation will take place at 11:45 a.m. at Ritter Hall on the Scripps campus in La Jolla, Calif., the site of Keeling’s lab, where the current Scripps CO2 Group operations continue today.

"This plaque is a great tribute to all the people who worked tirelessly over the years to sustain these detailed measurements,” said Ralph Keeling. "The Mauna Loa CO2 record changed how we view the world. It proved for the first time that humans were altering the composition of air globally, and it thereby legitimized the concern over human-caused climate change."

“The Keeling Curve is an icon of modern climate science,” said Thomas Barton, PhD, immediate past president of the American Chemical Society. “Dave Keeling’s meticulous research provided scientifically credible evidence that has proved critical to understanding and addressing human impacts on our environment. Keeling recognized in 1960 that fossil fuels are driving global atmospheric change, which presents serious challenges for Earth and its people. The global impacts of climate change are what make Keeling’s work so important, and so celebrated, today.”

Congratulations to all