Wei-Hock "Willie" Soon was the topic of controversy as it was revealed that he failed to disclose funding support from fossil fuel interests, putting his research in bad light. As a climate scientist, he has mainly argued against the consensus that human activity is largely to blame for global warming, a valid stance given the amount of research he has done to prove his point.

However, as information about the undisclosed funding surfaced, it has started to look like that his work may have been tainted to favor certain parties.

Soon has mostly remained silent, but the climate scientist may have had enough, releasing a statement on Monday, Mar. 2, through Heartland to air his side. He called the effort to attack him as a shameless attempt at silencing his scientific writings and research. He also bemoaned the idea that he is being used to warn other researchers of what will happen to them should they dare question, even slightly, the orthodox notion that global warming is mostly due to human activity.

"I am saddened and appalled by this effort. I am willing to debate the substance of my research and competing views of climate change with anyone, anytime, anywhere," he said, adding it's a shame that those who disagree with him would avoid public debate and resort to underhand tactics.

Soon wanted to make it clear that he has never been driven by financial gain to write a research paper nor did he leave out any grants that may have led to conflicting interests. He has spent 25 years of his life with the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics as a stellar and solar physicist and in that time has published more than a handful of scholarly articles reviewed by his peers. Soon also pointed out that the fact that his research is partly supported by donations received by the Smithsonian Institution, which may come from energy producers, has always been publicly disclosed.

Should the journals that previously published his works request Soon to make further disclosures, he said he is willing to comply. However, he wants the stricter enforcement of rules to apply as well to climate scientists from all sides. Soon also called on the media to be just as scrutinizing of climate scientists who support the notion that humans are responsible for global warming.

While it may have all started with Soon, other climate scientists are also being scrutinized by members of U.S. Congress, requested to not just disclose funding information but make private communications available as well to better assess if competing interests are present.

Photo: Richard Potts | Flickr