Jim Hansen, 72, Retiring

[LocoAko]

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/04/02/176010296/james-hansen-nasa-scientist-who-raised-climate-change-alarm-is-retiring

 

 

James Hansen, NASA Scientist Who Raised Climate Change Alarm, Is Retiring

 

by MARK MEMMOTT

 

April 02, 2013 1:31 PM

 

"After nearly half a century of research in planetary and climate science for NASA, James E. Hansen is retiring on Wednesday to pursue his passion for climate activism without the hindrances that come with government employment," The New York Times' Dot Earth blog writes.

 

As Morning Edition reported in 2009, Hansen "first warned Congress about global warming in 1988." Over time, he became more outspoken and active:

"After spending three or four years interacting with the Bush administration, I realized they were not taking any actions to deal with climate change," he told NPR in '09. "So, I decided to give one talk, and then it snowballed into another talk and eventually to even protesting and getting arrested."

 

He became, 

as 

The Washington Post

 says

, "NASA's most famous climate scientist." It rounds up some of the "more notable moments of his scientific career," from 

the 1988 testimony

 that was "one of the first and clearest public statements on global warming" to his 

arrest in February of this year

 at a protest outside the White House. He was among those objecting to the proposed Keystone XL Pipeline that would carry crude oil from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast.

 

The 

Times

 notes that

:

"Perhaps the biggest fight of Dr. Hansen's career broke out in late 2005, when a young political appointee in the administration of George W. Bush began exercising control over Dr. Hansen's statements and his access to journalists. Dr. Hansen 

took the fight public

 and the administration 

backed down

."

Now 72, Hansen is leaving NASA after 46 years. He 

tells the 

Post

 he wants to "spend full time on science, drawing attention to the implications for young people, and making clear what science says needs to be done."

 

[vortmax]

Sounds like he's 'retiring' to sue his former employer (the government)...

 

From the NYT:

 

At the same time, retirement will allow Dr. Hansen to press his cause in court. He plans to take a more active role in lawsuits challenging the federal and state governments over their failure to limit emissions, for instance, as well as in fighting the development in Canada of a particularly dirty form of oil extracted from tar sands.

“As a government employee, you can’t testify against the government,” he said in an interview.

Dr. Hansen had already become an activist in recent years, taking vacation time from NASA to appear at climate protests and allowing himself to be arrested or cited a half-dozen times.

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/02/science/james-e-hansen-retiring-from-nasa-to-fight-global-warming.html?_r=0