the climate brief Accurate Reporting of Climate Science

There might be a new generation of reactors - referred to in industry and politics as 'new nuclear' - but the rhetoric used to promote them is strikingly similar to previous generations.

The rhetoric of 'new nuclear' is specifically designed to distinguish Generation III (and 3+)reactors from previous generation reactors, or 'old nuclear' for the sake of argument. However, closer examination shows that the roots of nuclear rhetoric in the present day can be traced as far back as 1901.

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The US surge in oil and gas production is transforming the global market more profoundly than expected, according to a new report. But it warns other countries are unlikely to see a similar surge in production from unconventional fuels; nor will the world experience significant reductions in oil prices.

Speaking at the launch of the International Energy Agency (IEA)'s medium term oil market report at the Platts crude oil summit in London, agency head Maria van der Hoeven called the US's re-emergence as a significant producer of oil and gas a "game changer in every way".

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For more than a hundred years, scientists have known greenhouse gases warm the atmosphere. But despite trapping more and more heat, earth's surface temperature over the past decade and a half has risen slowly. And understanding where the extra heat ends up can be more complicated. 

We talk to Dr Richard Allan, lead researcher on a new project called Deep-C, about how the tools to take earth's temperature have changed - and how new measurements can help scientists investigate what's behind the surface warming slowdown.

Allan is a climate science researcher at the University of Reading's department of meteorology. His career has focussed on combining measurements with climate models to understand changes in earth's climate.

Heat sink

When we talk about the earth's temperature, we usually mean the temperature of the air above the land and ocean, or surface temperature, as it's what humans experience most directly. But surface temperature is only a small part of the climate system. In fact, most of the extra heat the planet absorbs goes into the oceans. Allan tells us:

"The vast ocean has a huge capacity to store heat … There's a very good relationship between the extra radiative energy entering the top of Earth's atmosphere - due to increases in greenhouse gases - and ocean heating."

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Centrica stokes energy fears by revealing EDF nuclear timescale has doubled
Energy company Centrica has heaped yet more doubt on the UK government's plans to build a fleet of nuclear power stations by claiming EDF will take twice as long as originally planned to build a new reactor at Hinkley Point.
Telegraph

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What Will a Doubling of Carbon Dioxide Mean for Climate?
What will happen to the planet when we double carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere? The New York Times take a look at climate sensitivity. But even if sensitivity is low, it argues, fossil fuels must still be brought under control.
The New York Times

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It's smart meter day, and as the Energy and Climate Change (ECC) Committee devotes itself to scrutinising the government's  £12 billion energy management scheme, the little LED-lit boxes will doubtless form the go-to topic of watercooler conversation all over the UK.

Worried you won't have anything to say? Here are five smart meter snippets to share with all your friends.

1. Smart meters help reduce emissions

Smart meters give people detailed information about how much energy they use and when. The government aims for all homes and small businesses to have  smart meters by 2020. 

At the moment, gas plants have to be powered up when energy demand peaks - normally when everyone gets up in the morning and makes a cup of tea and again when everyone gets home, puts the washing on, and settles down to watch Hollyoaks.

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The prospect of being in power when the lights go out is a politician's worst nightmare - and one that outgoing chief of energy company SSE, Ian Marchant, recently argued could come true in the next few years. In a  BBC interview Marchant explains his comments - and perspective on UK energy policy - in a bit more detail. 

Last month, Marchant said that the government has underestimated the risks of a crunch in power supply over the next few years - and there is a "  very real risk" of the lights going out as a result. 

It's not the only controversy the company is involved in. SSE was recently fined  £10.5 million by energy regulator Ofgem for misselling its deals to consumers. Despite a grovelling apology on the SSE homepage, Marchant argues in the interview that " misunderstanding" is behind most of the misselling. But what about the rest of Marchant's views? 

A crunch in UK power supply

Both Marchant and the head of energy regulator Ofgem, Alistair Buchanan, recently warned that the country could face a  squeeze in its reserve power supply as the older power stations close down. 

At the moment the country had more power stations than it needs to supply its demand for electricity, but that may change soon. In fact, according to Marchant, the oversupply means some plants are shutting down because "the generation that we've got isn't making any money".  In addition, old coal power stations are now being closed as a result of  EU regulations aimed at reducing pollution. 

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Carbon dioxide passes symbolic mark
For the first time in millions of years, carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has passed 400 ppm. This milestone is a sobering reminder of the rapid pace of climate change, say scientists in  the Guardian. An  Observer editorial highlights the need for swift political action, with the UK well-placed to build a low carbon industry.
BBC News 

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Taxpayers to bail out stricken coal giant
Ministers are trying to persuade the Coal Authority, a taxpayer-funded body sponsored by DECC, to take over Daw Mill deep mine in Warwickshire.
Sunday Times

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Coming to sites across the UK soon
The Independent claims the countryside could be "dotted with hundreds of naked flames several metres high" as fracking methane leakages are burnt off, and  green groups aren't happy about it. Meanwhile a Sussex village has  expressed concerns over Cuadrilla commencing oil exploration on its doorstep.
The Independent 

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Exclusive: Yeo warns of wide-ranging energy investment hiatus
Chair of the energy and climate change committee, Tim Yeo, has called for the government to fast track the energy bill to avoid an investment hiatus that could last through the summer.
BusinessGreen

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The Arctic wasn't always as cold and icy as it is now. Three million years ago, carbon dioxide levels were similar to today - but summer temperatures were eight degrees Celsius higher and Greenland was almost ice-free. A new study has scientists speculating whether earth's distant past can provide a window into future climate change.

Ancient lake

Scientists can glean clues about the history of Earth's climate by examining plants and animals preserved in ancient sediments. Fossilised pollen can reveal the vegetation that existed at different times, which in turn paints a picture of temperature and rainfall.

Published today in the journal Science, a new study uses the longest sediment core ever collected from the Arctic to reconstruct polar temperature between 2.2 and 3.3 million years ago.

The international team of scientists analysed fossilised pollen from layers of sediment below an 18 kilometre-wide lake in the northeast Russian Arctic, which formed when a meteorite hit earth nearly 3.6 million years ago.

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In a recent BBC Radio 4 programme on the origins of the Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT), the founders discussed why, in 1973, they'd felt moved to set up an eco-centre in an old Welsh slate quarry. Long before renewables were anything approaching mainstream, CAT was building wind turbines out of canvas and wood, and solar panels out of old radiators.

Since then renewable technology has been on a rhetorical journey.  The sustainable "good life" dream of the CAT pioneers has given way to issues of economic viability in the twenty-first century "green economy". But is the shift in framing from good life to green economy a movement betraying its principles, or evolving to address contemporary issues and concerns?

From Good Life to green economy

CAT's mission, states Radio 4's Sue MacGregor, "was to promote alternatives to the modern, high polluting technologies that produce so much of our energy, food and buildings". CAT's founders use phrases like "limits to growth" and "how to blend science with a way of doing more with less, and working with nature rather than destroying it". It's the philosophy that inspired Surbiton couple Barbara and Tom's pursuit of the sustainability dream in 1970s sitcom The Good Life.

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