June 13, 2024

The public often quotes a stupid number that physicists created indicating how long a greenhouse gas stays in the atmosphere. There is no such thing in science. All molecules of a type are indistinguishable, which means there is no determination of how long they stay in the atmosphere.

The molecules closest to the surface of the Earth move into and out of the atmosphere most readily, which means they would be in the atmosphere the shortest amount of time, while the molecules high in the atmosphere stay there the longest. But no measurements are made due to the stupidity of the concept. The molecules are all the same.

The stupidity seems to be related to how often molecules move into and out of the atmosphere, which is an analysis of dynamic equilibrium. The totality of the mass of a particularly molecule is used for evaluating dynamic equilibrium.

The result of dynamic equilibrium is expressed as exchange rate. There is a high exchange rate for carbon dioxide in the air being absorbed and released by the oceans. Warmer oceans release more carbon dioxide, which is part of the reason why carbon dioxide is increasing in the atmosphere. The oceans are warming and releasing more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

But that exchange rate is determined by the characteristics of ocean water. The exchange rate is slower for soil. Does that mean carbon dioxide stays in the atmosphere longer for soil? There is no rational concept of what staying in the atmosphere longer means.

The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere will increase and decrease based upon all factors involved in exchange rate. There are seasonal variations shown by total carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Nowhere in the analysis of quantities is there as concept of how long a molecule stays in the atmosphere. For physicists to derive such a number, when there is no such analysis, shows what frauds they are in addition to how stupid they are.