"One of the last gaps in the evidence pointing to a human cause for global warming appears to be closing," Andrew C. Revkin reports in this weekly Science Times piece. Reporting on what experts describe as "subtle but significant" findings from a re-examination of 24 years of data from weather satellites, he writes that "temperatures are rising in the lower layer of the atmosphere, called the troposphere, at a rate that is consistent with what has been measured at the earth's surface." Big deal? Indeed, Revkin writes, one leading to "more consensus than ever that emissions of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping greenhouse gases are noticeably altering climate." In addition, "previous studies of the same data, showing no warming, have been highlighted by opponents" of greenhouse gas reduction efforts. Revkin's piece –- and, more importantly, the study by private satellite experts at Remote Sensing Systems for NASA and the Commerce Department –- were greeted by those expressing concerns over global warming as an important development. All the same, the study "has not quelled doubters," Revkin reported, and he described the data as being "notoriously difficult to deal with because they were gathered by a dozen satellites launched over several decades with different kinds of instruments." In the end, however, Revkin attributed to "some scientists" the view that the new analysis removes the satellite records from "the realm of politicized science" and provides "one more data set" pointing to a continued generally warmer climate in coming years. (See http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0F10F63A5C0C7B8DDDA80994DB404482.)