When we started thinking about topics for Footprints for Blog Action Day 2009, I started doing some research about climate change and trends in temperature shifts on our planet. It was during this research that I realized an interesting intersection between climate change and Google.

Historical global temperature data shows that the mean temperature of the earth increased by about 0.5 degrees Celsius during the course of 20th Century. Man’s influence on climate change became a controversial topic towards the end of the century.

The rapid industrialization along with the associated burning of fossil fuels during the 20th Century has lead to a steady increase in the emissions of gases such as Methane and Carbon Dioxide. Studies have linked these increases to the change in temperature experienced.

Information Age Warming

In the latter half of the 20th Century, we moved from the Industrial Age into the Informational Age. After a relatively cool first 50 years, a warming period began. From 1960 through 1998, the temperature increased 0.6 degrees Celsius. (Source: HadC