New analysis has shown that temperature data across large portions of the world were "adjusted" upward by scientists, thus inflating the evidence in favor of climate change.
Temperature readings in South America and the Artic were "systematically" increased by one degree Celsius, according to The Telegraph (UK) in a column February 7. The piece looked at analysis by blogger Paul Homewood, who argued that alterations were made by scientists at the Global Historical Climate Network, the Goddard Institute for Space Studies and the National Climate Data Center, all of which were run by the U.S. government.
Telegraph columnist Christopher Booker said these agencies have "never plausibly explained" why they were "fiddling" with the data. "Yet these are the very records on which scientists and politicians rely for their belief in 'global warming'."
This was not the first time the accuracy of climate data has come into question. The Harry Read Me file and other documents released during the ClimateGate scandal in 2009 undermined the credibility of the data compiled by the Climatic Research Unit (CRU) at the University of East Anglia (UEA).
More recently, NASA and NOAA were criticized for publicizing the claim that 2014 was the hottest year on record. Skeptical scientists said this claim was a "deception" and "scientifically meaningless," because temperatures were hotter "by no more than four-hundredths of a degree."
