Claim that Global Warming Is Caused by Human Activity Factually Incorrect, Scientist Challenges US Government Report

June 30, Kathmandu – Climate scientists who were the first to scientifically prove that global warming is caused by human activities have challenged a recent US government report as ‘factually incorrect.’ The team, led by Professor Benjamin Santer, Emeritus Professor at the University of East Anglia, argued that the government report contains serious errors based on decades of satellite data analysis, making it unsuitable as a basis for climate policy formulation. Professor Santer is among the world’s pioneering researchers to identify the human fingerprint on Earth’s climate system.

Thanks to his groundbreaking research, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concluded in 1995 that human activities have a clear impact on global temperature increases. However, in July 2025, a US Department of Energy report cited Santer’s research yet claimed a minimal human role in climate change. On the same day the report was released, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed to repeal the historic 2009 ‘Endangerment Finding.’ Following this, the Trump administration moved forward with repealing this legal provision earlier this month, prompting widespread criticism for potential severe impacts on public health and environmental protection.

In this context, a new study published this week in the AGU Advances journal features joint research by Professor Santer, Professor Susan Solomon of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Professor David Thompson of the University of East Anglia, and Professor Chiang Fu of the University of Washington, who strongly rebuke the US Department of Energy report. According to Santer, changes in the composition of atmospheric gases provide undeniable evidence of human-induced climate change. Specifically, greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide are causing warming in the troposphere—the lowest layer of the atmosphere—while the stratosphere, the protective upper layer, is cooling.

These predictions by climate models over the past 50 years align closely with satellite observations. However, the US report reportedly misinterprets the cycle of atmospheric temperature changes. Due to procedural errors in the documentation, the team behind the report was disbanded in early September following a lawsuit, yet the Department of Energy has not corrected or removed the report from its website. Energy Secretary Wright continues to present it as a credible source on climate science, a position that Professor Santer denounces as completely unreliable and misleading. He emphasized that correcting such false scientific claims in government reports through peer-reviewed journals is crucial for diplomatic and legal battles.