The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is cutting back its measurements of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere as Congress shrinks its budget — even as fossil-fuel industries claim that the science of climate change isn't good enough to justify regulation.

The existing climate research budget crunch may be made worse by across-the-board cuts mandated if Congress and the White House fail to reach a budget agreement by January 2013.

During the administration of George W. Bush — which tried to emphasize scientific doubt and delay regulation — the strategy was to delay action by calling for more study. But that administration cut back measurements as well.

• "Budget Woes Force a Halt to Climate Monitoring at 12 Ground Stations," [2] ClimateWire, September 4, 2012, by Lauren Morello.
• Previous Story: WatchDog of July 17, 2008. [3]
• "U.S. Scales Back Climate Science Via Satellites," [4] Associated Press, June 4, 2007.