Climate change myths

There are a few scientists and commentators who don’t agree with the scientific evidence that human activity is changing the Earth’s climate.

It is important to consider all points of view, have informed debate and examine the arguments that climate sceptics make.

The level of consensus regarding climate change within the scientific community is unprecedented. The latest assessment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the work of over 2,500 scientists, from 130 countries, with over 800 peer reviewers.

'Global atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide have increased markedly as a result of human activities since 1750 and now far exceed pre-industrial values determined from ice cores spanning many thousands of years… most of the observed increase in the globally averaged temperature since the mid-20th century is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic greenhouse gas concentrations.'

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), 2007

Some scientists have spoken out against the scientific evidence for anthropogenic (man-made) global warming. Climate change sceptics continue to publicly challenge the science of climate change, claiming that human activity is not to blame.

In 2007, Channel 4 broadcast ‘The Great Global Warming Swindle’, a high profile television programme which made a number of assertions including: that solar activity matches temperature change trends over the last 100 years, that volcanoes produce more CO₂ every year than human activity, and that cosmic rays and heat from the sun have a greater impact on global warming than greenhouse gas emissions.

The scientific community was quick to respond, rebutting the claims made in the programme.

'The Great Global Warming Swindle does not represent the current state of knowledge in climate science… Many of the hypotheses presented in the Great Global Warming Swindle have been considered and rejected by due scientific process. This documentary is far from an objective, critical examination of climate science. Instead the Great Global Warming Swindle goes to great lengths to present outdated, incorrect or ambiguous data in such a way as to grossly distort the true understanding of climate change science, and to support a set of extremely controversial views.'

Bulletin of the Australian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society

The Met Office, The British Antarctic Survey, New Scientist magazine, and The Royal Society are among the organisations that have published guides and statements refuting common climate change myths, directly countering the claims of sceptics.

The Met Office

Has produced a ‘Climate Change myths toolkit’ in which Professor John Mitchell OBE FRS, Chief Scientist at the Met Office, explores some common myths about climate change.

'The Met Office recognises that climate change is a complex subject. There are genuine areas of uncertainty and scientific controversy. There are also a number of misunderstandings and myths which are recycled, often by non-climate scientists, and portrayed as scientific fact.'
The Met Office, ‘Climate Change myths’

The British Antarctic Survey

Directly countered the assertions made in ‘The Great Global Warming Swindle’ in a press release, BAS Statement, about the Channel 4 programme. 

New Scientist magazine

Published a special feature, ‘Climate change: A guide for the perplexed’, which has a round-up of the 26 most common climate myths and misconceptions, including:

• Human CO₂ emissions are too tiny to matter
• We can't trust computer models of climate
• It's been far warmer in the past, what's the big deal?
• It's too cold where I live - warming will be great
• Global warming is down to the Sun, not humans

Each myth and misconception is thoroughly addressed with weblinks to primary research and major reports so you can read the original sources.


The Royal Society

Has produced ‘A guide to facts and fictions about climate change’ and ‘Climate change controversies: a simple guide’ to address a series of common misleading arguments often repeated in the media by climate change sceptics.

'It has become fashionable in some parts of the UK media to portray the scientific evidence that has been collected about climate change and the impact of greenhouse gas emissions from human activities as an exaggeration. Some articles have claimed that scientists are ignoring uncertainties in our understanding of the climate and the factors that affect it. Some have questioned the motives of the scientists who have presented the most authoritative assessments of the science of climate change, claiming that they have a vested interest in ‘playing up’ the potential effects that climate change is likely to have.

This document examines twelve misleading arguments put forward by the opponents of urgent action on climate change and highlights the scientific evidence that exposes their flaws.'

The Royal Society, ‘A guide to facts and fictions about climate change’

Photo credit: Courtesy of SOHO/EIT consortium. SOHO is a project of international cooperation between ESA and NASA

Available for use under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 conditions.