Why Climate Stumps Even the Brightest Scientists

NYTIMES June 29, 2010 -- A study finds that 14 of the world's top climate scientists have widely varying views about how much the planet might heat up in the future.

The single biggest uncertainty identified by the 14 experts — and it was a unanimous judgment — was the role of clouds in the earth’s future climate. This may come as no surprise to anyone who has been following climate science closely; the cloud problem has been vexing researchers for decades.