If the anthropogenic global warming theory is wrong, why is the upper atmosphere cooling?

A cooling upper atmosphere is a key signature of an enhanced greenhouse effect. To grossly oversimplify, more heat trapped in the lower atmosphere causes the upper atmosphere (stratosphere and above) to cool. Conversely, if the planet is warming due to increased incoming solar radiation, you expect all layers of the atmosphere to warm. This is just basic physics which no climate scientists dispute.



In 1998, Jarvis et al. observed that indeed the thermosphere was behaving as predicted by AGW.



';The estimated long-term decrease in altitude is of a similar order of magnitude to that which has been predicted to result in the thermosphere from anthropogenic change related to greenhouse gases.';

http://www.agu.org/pubs/crossref/1998/98



In 2006, La拧tovi膷ka et al similarly observed that cooling trends in the upper atmosphyere were exactly as predicted by increasing greenhouse gas trends.

http://www.ufa.cas.cz/html/climaero/topi



And the stratosphere, although it's complicated by ozone depletion and recovery, has a pronounced cooling trend as well.

http://www.ssmi.com/msu/msu_data_descrip



How do you explain the cooling of the upper atmosphere other than with AGW?If the anthropogenic global warming theory is wrong, why is the upper atmosphere cooling?
The data for your first reference go back to 1950.



This doesn't stop Ottawa Mike from pretending that the record only started in 2001, and that therefore the denialists have nothing to explain.



You can't argue with logic like that.



Edit: I've got two thumbs down inside 12 minutes. Why?If the anthropogenic global warming theory is wrong, why is the upper atmosphere cooling?
Well to start, accurate measurements of the upper atmospheric temperature only began in 2001 with the launch of the TIMED mission: http://www.timed.jhuapl.edu/WWW/index.ph



Now with 8 years of data, NASA has proposed that the cooling in the upper atmosphere is linked to the reduction in the sun's activity: http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/feature



As is the case with most advances in knowledge, we are now in a position of better understanding climate change and its effects throughout the entire atmosphere.



As usual, you want to reach a conclusion ahead of the knowledge base.
The short answer has to do with the science of heat physics. No matter how much of the sun's energy falls on the earth, the same amount has to be radiated away or heat will build up. That's why people sweat and that's why there's a radiator on your car. If you build up a significant greenhouse barrier the amount of heat escaping into out space decreases. Of course you want some heat to be retained or at night the earth surface would plunge into the below zero area...not good. On the flip side you want a good deal of the heat radiated away or you'll burn up...also not good. Currently not as much heat is getting through the CO2, methane and water vapor that's built up in our paper thin atmosphere because of burning fossil fuels so the stratosphere up there above the cirrus clouds is cooling off...probably not good. The deniers of course have probably never parked their car in the sun with the windows rolled up...a fairly good analog for the greenhouse effect. It gets really hot in a car parked in the sun with the windows rolled up. Set 'yer tushy down on that black upholstery and the concept of 'global warming' will give you a darn good object lesson. Some deniers say the sun is getting 'hotter'...so what? The heat has to be radiated away regardless of how much incoming energy has to be dealt with. Others say it's volcanoes....that's a crock. Volcanoes put out carbon 12 and carbon 13. Burning fossil fuels produce carbon 14, a radioactive element that all living things absorb. When these living things decay or get burned, like coal and oil, the carbon 14 is released...that's how we know what percent of the atmosphere comes from burning stuff...and it's a lot and it's not a good thing. I could go on, but the deniers will just come back with some bull #$%^ about Al Gore or what some right wing radio dummy said. ';Ya gotta' love these guys!