Methane nearly 100 times more warming over 5 years than CO2; can be removed more quickly

In the article “Global warming in the twenty-first century: An alternative scenario“, world-leading climatologist James Hansen looks at the effects of non-CO2 on climate change. Citing this and other findings, Dr Kirk Smith penned an article highlighting how methane causes almost 100 times more warming in a 5 year span than CO2 and can be removed more quickly than CO2 as it has a half-life of 8.5 years, compared with many decades for CO2.

According to Dr Kirk Smith, also a world authority on non-CO2 GHG:

“Methane is a much more powerful greenhouse gas than CO2. A tonne of methane is responsible for nearly 100 times more warming over the first five years of its lifetime in the atmosphere than a tonne of CO2. Methane is removed from the atmosphere much more rapidly than CO2.”

Source: Methane controls before risky geoengineering, please – Dr Kirk Smith New Scientist Magazine – article preview – GoodPlanet.info – full article

Date: 25 June 2009

Source: Global warming in the twenty-first century: An alternative scenario NASA site – abbreviated version – Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) – full article

Date: 2001