Willie Soon
Encyclopedia
Willie Wei-Hock Soon is an astrophysicist
at the Solar and Stellar Physics Division of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
. Soon has testified before Congress
on the issue of climate change He is known for his views that most global warming
is caused by solar variation
. In 2011, it was revealed that he received over $1,000,000 from petroleum
and coal
interests since 2001.
In addition to writing a range of technical papers on solar and stellar behavior, the physics of climate change, and an astronomy textbook for students, Soon co-authored The Maunder Minimum and the Variable Sun–Earth Connection with Steven H. Yaskell (2004). The book treats historical and proxy records of climate change coinciding with the Maunder Minimum
(c 1645-1715). In 2004 Soon was awarded the "Petr Beckmann Award for courage and achievement in the defense of scientific truth" by Doctors for Disaster Preparedness
.
He has been chief science adviser to the Science and Public Policy Institute
, a think tank
which disputes the belief that global warming
is anthropogenic. Soon is also associated with the George C. Marshall Institute
, where he co-authored Lessons and Limits of Climate History: Was 20th Century Climate Unusual? with Sallie Baliunas
. The pair have also written for the Fraser Institute
of Canada regarding Sun-climate connections. One of their publications was the center of political controversy
, and editors resigned from the journal which published the paper. Soon and Baliunas have also been criticised because their research budget was funded in part by the American Petroleum Institute
, a trade association
. Another paper coauthored by Soon started a heated debate with polar bear experts.
as co-author. This paper concluded that "the 20th century is probably not the warmest nor a uniquely extreme climatic period of the last millennium."
Shortly thereafter, 13 scientists published a rebuttal to the paper. There were three main objections: Soon and Baliunas used data reflective of changes in moisture, rather than temperature; they failed to distinguish between regional and hemispheric temperature anomalies; and they reconstructed past temperatures from proxy evidence not capable of resolving decadal trends. More recently, Osborn and Briffa repeated the Soon and Baliunas study but restricted themselves to records that were validated as temperature proxies, and came to a different result. However, the Osborn/Briffa study itself was criticized for methodological flaws. Osborn and Briffa have responded to this criticism.
After publication, Hans Von Storch
, Clare Goodess, and 2 more members of the journal's editorial board, resigned in protest against what they felt was a failure of the peer review process on the part of the journal. Otto Kinne, managing director of the journal's parent company, stated that "CR [Climate Research] should have been more careful and insisted on solid evidence and cautious formulations before publication" and that "CR should have requested appropriate revisions of the manuscript prior to publication."
Five percent of the Soon-Baliunas study's budget ($53,000) was funded by the American Petroleum Institute
. At the time Soon and Baliunas were also paid consultants of the Marshall Institute
.
, Baliunas
, Timothy F. Ball and Hancock. Several of these authors are known for their skeptical views on global warming. In this paper they argue that climate change
may not be the ultimate control factor on polar bear
survival. Specifically they argue that there has been no spring warming in the Hudson Bay
area over a 70 year period. As an alternative they list several other factors which may have a negative effect on the polar bear populations, such as increased human-bear interaction. The Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin
, cited this paper in a bid to get polar bears delisted from the U.S. Endangered Species Act
. Some polar bear scientists and environmental scientists, including Ian Stirling
and Andrew Derocher, responded with a viewpoint article in the same journal. They argued that the alternative explanations for polar bear decline are "Largely unsupported by the data available."
under the US Freedom of Information Act show that the Charles G. Koch Foundation
gave Soon two grants totaling $175,000 in 2005/6 and again in 2010. Multiple grants from the American Petroleum Institute
between 2001 and 2007 totalled $274,000, and grants from Exxon Mobil totalled $335,000 between 2005 and 2010. Other coal and oil industry sources which funded him include the Mobil Foundation, the Texaco Foundation and the Electric Power Research Institute
. Soon has stated unequivocally that he has "never been motivated by financial reward in any of my scientific research."
Astrophysics
Astrophysics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physics of the universe, including the physical properties of celestial objects, as well as their interactions and behavior...
at the Solar and Stellar Physics Division of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
The Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics is one of the largest and most diverse astrophysical institutions in the world, where scientists carry out a broad program of research in astronomy, astrophysics, earth and space sciences, and science education...
. Soon has testified before Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
on the issue of climate change He is known for his views that most global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
is caused by solar variation
Solar variation
Solar variation is the change in the amount of radiation emitted by the Sun and in its spectral distribution over years to millennia. These variations have periodic components, the main one being the approximately 11-year solar cycle . The changes also have aperiodic fluctuations...
. In 2011, it was revealed that he received over $1,000,000 from petroleum
Petroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
and coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
interests since 2001.
In addition to writing a range of technical papers on solar and stellar behavior, the physics of climate change, and an astronomy textbook for students, Soon co-authored The Maunder Minimum and the Variable Sun–Earth Connection with Steven H. Yaskell (2004). The book treats historical and proxy records of climate change coinciding with the Maunder Minimum
Maunder Minimum
The Maunder Minimum is the name used for the period roughly spanning 1645 to 1715 when sunspots became exceedingly rare, as noted by solar observers of the time....
(c 1645-1715). In 2004 Soon was awarded the "Petr Beckmann Award for courage and achievement in the defense of scientific truth" by Doctors for Disaster Preparedness
Doctors for Disaster Preparedness
Doctors for Disaster Preparedness is a body associated with the Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine, a non-profit, privately-funded research institute. Its website states that DDP promotes homeland defense and prudent preparedness for disasters of all kinds, including war or terrorism...
.
He has been chief science adviser to the Science and Public Policy Institute
Science and Public Policy Institute
The Science and Public Policy Institute is an organization which concerns itself with issues related to carbon dioxide and global warming. It is based in Virginia, USA and was founded around 2007. It describes itself as:...
, a think tank
Think tank
A think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...
which disputes the belief that global warming
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
is anthropogenic. Soon is also associated with the George C. Marshall Institute
George C. Marshall Institute
The George C. Marshall Institute is a politically conservative think tank established in 1984 in Washington, D.C. with a focus on scientific issues and public policy. In the 1980s, the Institute was engaged primarily in lobbying in support of the Strategic Defense Initiative...
, where he co-authored Lessons and Limits of Climate History: Was 20th Century Climate Unusual? with Sallie Baliunas
Sallie Baliunas
Sallie Baliunas is an astrophysicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in the Solar, Stellar, and Planetary Sciences Division and formerly Deputy Director of the Mount Wilson Observatory. She serves as Senior Scientist at the George C. Marshall Institute in Washington, DC, and...
. The pair have also written for the Fraser Institute
Fraser Institute
The Fraser Institute is a Canadian think tank. It has been described as politically conservative and right-wing libertarian and espouses free market principles...
of Canada regarding Sun-climate connections. One of their publications was the center of political controversy
Soon and Baliunas controversy
The Soon and Baliunas controversy involved the publication of a paper written by Willie Soon and Sallie Baliunas in the journal Climate Research, which prompted concerns about the peer review process of the paper and resulted in the resignation of several other editors and the eventual repudiation...
, and editors resigned from the journal which published the paper. Soon and Baliunas have also been criticised because their research budget was funded in part by the American Petroleum Institute
American Petroleum Institute
The American Petroleum Institute, commonly referred to as API, is the largest U.S trade association for the oil and natural gas industry...
, a trade association
Trade association
A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association or sector association, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry...
. Another paper coauthored by Soon started a heated debate with polar bear experts.
Controversy over the 2003 Climate Research paper
In 2003 Willie Soon was first author on a review paper in the journal Climate Research, with Sallie BaliunasSallie Baliunas
Sallie Baliunas is an astrophysicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in the Solar, Stellar, and Planetary Sciences Division and formerly Deputy Director of the Mount Wilson Observatory. She serves as Senior Scientist at the George C. Marshall Institute in Washington, DC, and...
as co-author. This paper concluded that "the 20th century is probably not the warmest nor a uniquely extreme climatic period of the last millennium."
Shortly thereafter, 13 scientists published a rebuttal to the paper. There were three main objections: Soon and Baliunas used data reflective of changes in moisture, rather than temperature; they failed to distinguish between regional and hemispheric temperature anomalies; and they reconstructed past temperatures from proxy evidence not capable of resolving decadal trends. More recently, Osborn and Briffa repeated the Soon and Baliunas study but restricted themselves to records that were validated as temperature proxies, and came to a different result. However, the Osborn/Briffa study itself was criticized for methodological flaws. Osborn and Briffa have responded to this criticism.
After publication, Hans Von Storch
Hans von Storch
Hans von Storch is a German climate scientist. He is Professor at the Meteorological Institute of the University of Hamburg, and Director of the Institute for Coastal Research at the Helmholtz Research Centre in Geesthacht, Germany...
, Clare Goodess, and 2 more members of the journal's editorial board, resigned in protest against what they felt was a failure of the peer review process on the part of the journal. Otto Kinne, managing director of the journal's parent company, stated that "CR [Climate Research] should have been more careful and insisted on solid evidence and cautious formulations before publication" and that "CR should have requested appropriate revisions of the manuscript prior to publication."
Five percent of the Soon-Baliunas study's budget ($53,000) was funded by the American Petroleum Institute
American Petroleum Institute
The American Petroleum Institute, commonly referred to as API, is the largest U.S trade association for the oil and natural gas industry...
. At the time Soon and Baliunas were also paid consultants of the Marshall Institute
George C. Marshall Institute
The George C. Marshall Institute is a politically conservative think tank established in 1984 in Washington, D.C. with a focus on scientific issues and public policy. In the 1980s, the Institute was engaged primarily in lobbying in support of the Strategic Defense Initiative...
.
Polar bear debate
A heated debate was created from a "viewpoint" article in the journal Ecological Complexity which Soon coauthored with Dyck, Baydack, LegatesDavid Legates
David Russell Legates is a Professor of Geography at the University of Delaware. He is the former Director of the Center for Climatic Research at the same university, and a former Delaware State Climatologist....
, Baliunas
Sallie Baliunas
Sallie Baliunas is an astrophysicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in the Solar, Stellar, and Planetary Sciences Division and formerly Deputy Director of the Mount Wilson Observatory. She serves as Senior Scientist at the George C. Marshall Institute in Washington, DC, and...
, Timothy F. Ball and Hancock. Several of these authors are known for their skeptical views on global warming. In this paper they argue that climate change
Global warming
Global warming refers to the rising average temperature of Earth's atmosphere and oceans and its projected continuation. In the last 100 years, Earth's average surface temperature increased by about with about two thirds of the increase occurring over just the last three decades...
may not be the ultimate control factor on polar bear
Polar Bear
The polar bear is a bear native largely within the Arctic Circle encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the world's largest land carnivore and also the largest bear, together with the omnivorous Kodiak Bear, which is approximately the same size...
survival. Specifically they argue that there has been no spring warming in the Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...
area over a 70 year period. As an alternative they list several other factors which may have a negative effect on the polar bear populations, such as increased human-bear interaction. The Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin
Sarah Louise Palin is an American politician, commentator and author. As the Republican Party nominee for Vice President in the 2008 presidential election, she was the first Alaskan on the national ticket of a major party and first Republican woman nominated for the vice-presidency.She was...
, cited this paper in a bid to get polar bears delisted from the U.S. Endangered Species Act
Endangered species
An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
. Some polar bear scientists and environmental scientists, including Ian Stirling
Ian Stirling
Ian Stirling, OC, FRSC is a Scientist Emeritus with the Canadian Wildlife Service. His research has focused mostly on Arctic and Antarctic zoology and ecology, and he is one of the world's top authorities on polar bears....
and Andrew Derocher, responded with a viewpoint article in the same journal. They argued that the alternative explanations for polar bear decline are "Largely unsupported by the data available."
Funding by fossil fuel business interests
Documents obtained by GreenpeaceGreenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
under the US Freedom of Information Act show that the Charles G. Koch Foundation
Koch Family Foundations
Koch Family Foundations is the informal name for a group of charities in the United States of America associated with the family of Fred C. Koch. The most prominent of these are the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation and the David H. Koch Charitable Foundation, created by two of Fred C...
gave Soon two grants totaling $175,000 in 2005/6 and again in 2010. Multiple grants from the American Petroleum Institute
American Petroleum Institute
The American Petroleum Institute, commonly referred to as API, is the largest U.S trade association for the oil and natural gas industry...
between 2001 and 2007 totalled $274,000, and grants from Exxon Mobil totalled $335,000 between 2005 and 2010. Other coal and oil industry sources which funded him include the Mobil Foundation, the Texaco Foundation and the Electric Power Research Institute
Electric Power Research Institute
The Electric Power Research Institute conducts research on issues related to the electric power industry in USA. EPRI is a nonprofit organization funded by the electric utility industry. EPRI is primarily a US based organization, receives international participation...
. Soon has stated unequivocally that he has "never been motivated by financial reward in any of my scientific research."
See also
- List of scientists opposing the mainstream scientific assessment of global warming
- Climate change denialClimate change denialClimate change denial is a term used to describe organized attempts to downplay, deny or dismiss the scientific consensus on the extent of global warming, its significance, and its connection to human behavior, especially for commercial or ideological reasons...
- Proxy (climate)Proxy (climate)In the study of past climates is known as paleoclimatology, climate proxies are preserved physical characteristics of the past that stand in for direct measurements , to enable scientists to reconstruct the climatic conditions that prevailed during much of the Earth's history...
- Instrumental temperature recordInstrumental temperature recordThe instrumental temperature record shows fluctuations of the temperature of the global land surface and oceans. This data is collected from several thousand meteorological stations, Antarctic research stations and satellite observations of sea-surface temperature. Currently, the longest-running...
External links
- Marshall Institute
- http://www.astrosociety.org/pubs/mercury/32_03/summer.html
- http://www.marshall.org/experts.php?id=44 George C. Marshall Institute
- United States Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, July 29, 2003, Testimony of Dr. Willie Soon
- http://capmag.com/article.asp?ID=478 capmag.com