Email from the hacked CRU server

Recently, emails were stolen from a server at the Climate Research Unit at the University of East Anglia in the UK. These include private correspondence about climate research and related matters. Some consider the content of the emails revealing, and cast doubt on the veracity of the conclusion that climate change is caused by human activity.

Story on New York Times and on RealClimate: Climate science from climate scientists (the latter is a better report).

More interesting is what is not contained in the emails. There is no evidence of any worldwide conspiracy, no mention of George Soros nefariously funding climate research, no grand plan to ‘get rid of the MWP’, no admission that global warming is a hoax, no evidence of the falsifying of data, and no ‘marching orders’ from our socialist/communist/vegetarian overlords. The truly paranoid will put this down to the hackers also being in on the plot though.

What was found among the hundreds of emails reveals something that everyone should be made aware of. You will have no way to verify that this email is genuine, but you can take my word that it is. I promise. (And that goes for all the other emails, too, of course.)

The following email was sent from one scientist at CRU to a colleague at the University of Wisconsin on August 17th, 2009:

[Name withheld], I just wanted to let you know how much help and inspiration I have received from Bjørn through the years. The numerous phone conversations we have had over the years on the topic of climate change has helped me tremendously. I am simply not sure I could have made any progress without his advice, and I am certain that his influence on the field is so great that neither Kyoto nor Copenhagen would ever have taken place if it hadn't been for his expertise. And yet, despite his contributions, he refuses to take any credit. You may ask me why, and the answer is that he let me know that he would prefer to remain anonymous and let others take the credit, so that he can focus on his true passion of evolutionary biology. Let's agree to respect his wish.

Yours,
[Name withheld]

Again, I personally have no interest in revealing this email, but in order to avoid any potential accusations of hiding who the true experts are, I have decided to make the email public. Again, I swear that it is not a fake (like many others we will see published in the days to come will no doubt turn out to be).