FLICKR, NASAPresident-elect Donald Trump has tapped a handful of climate deniers for Cabinet positions and his transition team has reportedly asked for the names of employees conducting climate science at the US Department of Energy (DOE). Trump has in the past mused that climate change is part of a Chinese conspiracy and, paradoxically, he recently met with former Vice President Al Gore.
The volatility is enough to make some climate scientists worry about their data, The Washington Post reported. “What are the most important .gov climate assets?” Eric Holthaus, a meteorologist and journalist, posted on Twitter. “Scientists: Do you have a US .gov climate database that you don’t want to see disappear?”
Within two days, more than 50 key data sets had been identified and six had been archived on non-government servers. A collaboration between the University of Toronto and the University of Pennsylvania is now compiling a website to harbor scientific information that some scientists believe may be at risk of disappearing.
Holthaus acknowledged that Trump has never actually threatened to delete climate data, but maintained that the effort was important. “I genuinely don’t think the ...
