Remember this Associated Press before and after image that purportedly showed the North Pole turning into a lake due to “global warming”?
This was the day Brad Johnson of “Forecast the Facts” (a political group affiliated with the Center for American Progress and paid to harass TV weathercasters and meteorologists who don’t share their melting world view) made himself look like the complete idiot we know him to be. Observe the propaganda they sent around:
Note that WUWT published on why this imagery has no scientific merit, and the principal scientist issued a statement saying that it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary.
Even AP saw they’d screwed up and issued a retraction:
Title : ELIMINATION North Pole Lake
Caption : EDITORS, PHOTO EDITORS, AND PHOTO LIBRARIANS – PLEASE ELIMINATE AP PHOTO NY109 THAT WAS SENT ON SATURDAY, JULY 27, 2013. THE CAPTION INACCURATELY STATED THAT ‘THE SHALLOW MELTWATER LAKE IS OCCURRING DUE TO AN UNUSUALLY WARM PERIOD.’ IN FACT, THE WATER ACCUMULATES IN THIS WAY EVERY SUMMER. IN ADDITION, THE IMAGES DO NOT NECESSARILY SHOW CONDITIONS AT THE NORTH POLE, BECAUSE THE WEATHER BUOY CARRYING THE CAMERA USED BY THE NORTH POLE ENVIRONMENTAL OBSERVATORY HAS DRIFTED HUNDREDS OF MILES FROM ITS ORIGINAL POSITION, WHICH WAS A FEW DOZEN MILES FROM THE POLE- This frame grab provided by NOAA shows images from the wide-angle camera trained on a weather buoy maintained by the North Pole Environmental Observatory at the North Pole. The top image is a June 7, 2013 frame grab. The bottom image is a July 25, 2013 frame grab. (AP Photo/NOAA)
Source: http://foto.agerpres.ro/index.php?i=7147048
Will Brad Johnson and “Forecast the Facts” issue a retraction? Doubtful, because to do so would highlight their own stupidity disguised as paid agenda.
So it wasn’t unusual, it wasn’t ‘global warming’ and it wasn’t at the North Pole.
But apart from that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you enjoy the play?
‘THE SHALLOW MELTWATER LAKE IS OCCURRING DUE TO AN UNUSUALLY WARM PERIOD.’
http://ocean.dmi.dk/arctic/meant80n.uk.php
I’ll stick my neck out and say this year will be the coldest melt season in the DMI record.(The coldest summer ever, ha ha)
It doesn’t matter the damage is done, few people read retractions.
O/T but Chris Huhne has landed a £100K job with a biomass company, that stands top make millions from his renewable policies.
http://notalotofpeopleknowthat.wordpress.com/2013/08/10/the-criminal-huhne-lands-100k-job-with-biomass-company/
THE IMAGES DO NOT NECESSARILY SHOW CONDITIONS AT THE NORTH POLE
What do they mean “does not necessarily show”? It does not. Period. Full stop. The picture was taken hundreds of miles from the North Pole.
What I have read, from non reputable sources I must admit, is that the device that took the picture of the “north pole lake” was some 350 nautical miles from *THE* north pole.
It’s OK. They are aware some of us know they phenomenally screwed up. It’s enough. It’s public and on the record. We can’t ask for more.
And, btw, AP does not like to issue retractions. This means they will (certainly should) be more careful from now on. It is a small victory.
Facts? Don’t give us facts. What is the SCIENTIFIC CONSENSUS about the North Pole lake? /s
Anthony
Please can you through any light on this story in The Guardian re children until life time gagging order after their parents settled with a Oil/fracking company?
I’m sure the Guardian has spun the story but have no evidence?
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/aug/05/children-ban-talking-about-fracking
REPLY: Sorry, no. Plus this is way off topic. Use contact page or tips/notes – Anthony
The whole episode is here – takes a couple of minutes to show the ‘melting’.
http://www.arctic.noaa.gov/np2013/2013-cam2.mov
stuart L says:
August 10, 2013 at 3:52 am
It doesn’t matter the damage is done, few people read retractions
Stuart, that was the point. Sucker punch the public with a falsehood and then walk away unscathed. Tried and true media methodology.
“You can’t make this stuff up!”
Oh, wait… they did.
If a retraction is made and no one ever sees it, is it still a retraction?
Even more interesting…. Have you seen it lately? The pictures same camera 2. Is it this one on the sea ice page?
http://psc.apl.washington.edu/northpole/NPEO2013/18.jpg
Funny, 404 on that lake, if that is it. Must be climate changed part 2.
Too early, correction for my post above. The picture SAYS camera 2.
George
Just another typical AGW claim: hyped, deceptive and untrue.
Now I am wondering if that is the actual AP site, and if it is an actual retraction.
This should be reviewed very careful to avoid egg-on-face syndrome…….
Here is a video of a Russian nuclear icebreaker visiting the north pole on July 31 this year.
I think this is the site with the wonky camera.
http://psc.apl.washington.edu/northpole/NPEO2013/webcams1and2.html
…THE CAPTION INACCURATELY STATED THAT ‘THE SHALLOW MELTWATER LAKE IS OCCURRING DUE TO AN UNUSUALLY WARM PERIOD.’ IN FACT, THE WATER ACCUMULATES IN THIS WAY EVERY SUMMER. IN ADDITION, THE IMAGES DO NOT NECESSARILY SHOW CONDITIONS AT THE NORTH POLE…
It would be extremely interesting to find out how that erroneous caption got there in the first place….
If the press, including the AP, was actually unbiased, at least one of these climate reporting mistakes over the years should have been erroneously reporting a cooling event. The absence of any such reporting error suggests such misleading reports are intentional.
The AP story is just another media sales pitch and a small mistake compared to this guy…!
http://www.sierraclub.ca/en/AdultDiscussionPlease
I wonder if HE is going to issue a retraction?
I agree with Hunter @ur momisugly 5:01. I have worked in media for 30+ years and have never seen AP do anything like this. Even though the photo is bogus in several ways I encourage caution.
It may be just a spring shoot, but AP issuing a retraction of an alarmist story which was inaccurate, is a significant thing and a sign of that slow tectonic shift now occurring in the MSM. Somebody cut and pasted a press hand-out without really checking it and mebbe they’ll think twice before doing it again.
Pointman
So we have people wandering around the Arctic breaking up the ice with huge ice breakers, and the result of this
“butterfly flapping its wings”
is what?
How many eco-tourists go tootling up and down the Fram strait, the Northwest passage, the Northeast passage, breaking up the ice jams so they could see everything with what result?
They might want to think about Dunning-Kruger effect and Glass’s “levels of ignorance” as well as the SMBC “climbing Mt. Stupid” before answering.
Richard111 says:
August 10, 2013 at 5:09 am
Says it all, really, doesn’t it?