The longest, most nearly continuous record of measured atmospheric carbon dioxide taken by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Scripps Institution of Oceanography at Mauna Loa Observatory shows a small persistent rise in global carbon dioxide concentrations.There are also minuscule, hard‐to‐explain fluctuations in the rate at which this increase is occurring, according to Kirby Hanson, director of NOAA's Geophysical Monitoring for Climatic Changes program. He said that understanding these fluctuations is necessary for us to adequately discriminate between the human and natural factors causing the carbon dioxide increase. Such accurate assessment is also needed to predict future concentrations of carbon dioxide that may result from differing scenarios for burning fossil fuels, Hanson s