Scientists say that 1998 was the hottest year in the past 1,200 years
A study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ( noaa ) shows that 1998 was likely to be the warmest year in the Northern Hemisphere in the last 1,200 years. Scientists also believe that the heat wave was due to carbon dioxide and emissions from the burning of fossil fuels like coal and oil.
The findings contradict the argument that there was a warm period in the Middle Ages. "What we have found is that the medieval warming period didn't exist," says Jonathan Overpeck, head of noaa climatology programme in Boulder, Colorado. "There may have been a relatively brief period of warming for 100 years or less in Northern Europe around 1300. But the pattern was regional not global," he adds.
Another study by the National Science Foundation refutes the belief that global warming may help farmers by increasing their crop yields. The study shows that global warming may actually decrease crop yields by stimulating the growth of weeds and insects. Jim Detling, a researcher at the Colorado State University said that for each centigrade degree rise in average temperature, the growth of a common type of grass in Colorado pasture lands decreased by one-third.
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