A Brief History of CO2

The daily measuring of atmospheric CO2 at Mauna Loa began in 1958.  The first documented level was 315.70 parts per million (ppm) in March, 1958.  The maximum that year was 317.51 ppm in May.  The yearly maximum this last May was 419.13 ppm, a rise of 32.8% from the 1958 maximum.  During those 63 years, the awareness of the effects of GHGs, in particular CO2, have lead to increasing pressure on governments, industries and individuals to take ever more drastic action.

I created this chart to give some of the historic milestones that have happened over the last 63 years of CO2 measurements.  I consider this (U) unlicense.org, so please use it as you like. What is painfully clear is that we just keep on dumping more into the atmosphere, no matter who says what, who gets a Nobel prize, what organization is created, what report comes out or what agreements governments make.  The future is clear, and it is a terribly sad future.  Be kind.