by Robert C. Balling Jr.

About the author: Robert C. Balling Jr. is the director of the office of climatology at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona. He is the author of several books on climate change.

Ibelieve that the best available evidence argues strongly against any rapid and substantial changes to the planetary temperature. Since 1989, a fascinating spectrum of opinions has emerged in the global warming debate. On one end of this spectrum are scientists and some policymakers suggesting that an increase in greenhouse gases will not create any catastrophic climate changes in the decades to come. Their assessment leads to the conclusion that the most probable climatic changes (for example, increasing nighttime temperatures, lowering afternoon temperatures, increasing precipitation) may not be disastrous and could even be beneficial to life on the planet.

A Spectrum of Opinions