Scientists 'agree' on global warming impact

An overwhelming majority of scientists throughout Europe and North America have agreed that human actions are influencing global warming.

Eight in ten of scientists surveyed by researchers at the University of Illinois in Chicago agree that humans are playing a part in climate change.

Of the 3,146 polled, 90 per cent agreed that global temperatures had risen compared to pre-1800 levels.

However, there were significant discrepancies among scientists from different disciplines.

Some 97 per cent of climatologists actively engaged in research agreed that humans played a role, compared to only 47 per cent of geologists.

Meanwhile, less than two thirds (64 per cent) of meteorologists believed that human activity had impacted on planet temperatures.

The study was carried out by professor of earth and environmental sciences, Peter Doran and former graduate student Maggie Zimmerman.

Mr Doran said: "Most members of the public think meteorologists know climate, but most of them actually study very short-term phenomena.

"I guess the take-home message is, the more you know about the field of climate science, the more you're likely to believe in global warming and humankind's contribution to it."

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