Willie Soon

Willie Wei - Hock Soon (born 1966 in Kangar, Malaysia ) is an American astrophysicist. International recognition Soon has especially gained with studies and public floor on environmental problems.

Life and work

Soon research since 1991 at the Harvard - Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. In addition, he is, had worked for the George C. Marshall Institute, a politically conservative think - tank.

In 2003, together with Sallie Baliunas published Soon two almost identical articles in the journal Climate Research and published in the journal Energy & Environment, where they considered the current global warming as insignificant in comparison to other historical climate changes of the last millennium. After sharp professional criticism because of methodological deficiencies in the study distanced themselves the editor of the journal, Otto Kinne, and the editor in chief, Hans von Storch, of the published article. Von Storch also resigned from his post as editor in chief back. Nevertheless, the study of the then U.S. administration of George W. Bush has been used as alleged proof of the assertion that climate change is unnecessary.

Soon 2007 was co- author of a study according to which polar bears are not threatened by climate change. The Republican politician Sarah Palin took the opportunity to call for the removal of polar bears from the list of protected species.

In a 2011 published opinion article for the conservative Wall Street Journal Soon claimed that the U.S. EPA would exaggerate the health hazards of industrial mercury emissions.

His theses has spread as a guest speaker at campaign events of right-wing populist Tea Party movement Soon.

Published in 2011, the environmental organization Greenpeace, the results of a study according to which Soon has received over a period of 10 years, over 1 million U.S. dollars from industry and advocacy groups. Under Soons donors were therefore inter alia, the oil company ExxonMobil, the energy company Southern Co., the lobby group American Petroleum Institute, as well as a foundation of Charles Koch. Soon admitted the receipt of the payments, but denied to have been influenced by it.