Adjusting the temperature

For some time, Steve Goddard at Real Science has been highlighting a curious problem with US surface temperature data as compiled by NASA. The issue isn’t new but worth another airing because of the wider implications for official data, especially now global cooling is a serious possibility.

The US surface temperature graph below was first published by NASA in 1999. Source. It shows quite clearly that US temperatures exhibited no overall trend since the 1920s. Note the 1930s peak when John Steinbeck wrote his Dust Bowl novel, The Grapes of Wrath.

However, NASA has since managed to adjust the environment of Steinbeck’s novel, cooling it relative to more recent temperatures, including those published in 1999. The US surface temperature chart below is the current version published by NASA. Source.

I wonder who carries out this vital work for NASA? Winston Smith springs to mind. If global cooling begins in earnest, then the message is simple – buy your own thermometer.