Back when there were Arctic alligators and turtles, ‘polar stratospheric clouds’ kept their world warm. Research suggests these clouds contribute to the ‘missing warming’ in climate models.
Articles on Past climate change
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New research on the Nullarbor Plain reveals the ancient climate change that separated Australia’s east and west ecosystems, shaping today’s biodiversity.
Unravelling the mystery of how life in Antarctica survived past ice ages involved sampling some of the oldest museum records. When combined with a dating database, a familiar story is revealed.
The new work presents the oldest dated evidence for hominins in Arabia, in the form of an ancient handaxe tool uncovered from the Nefud Desert.
Greenland’s conditions were once similar to those of a greenhouse. Volcanoes swelled the land, constricted seaways and gigatonnes of greenhouse gases were released into the atmosphere.
The last time global carbon dioxide levels were around 400ppm was four million years ago. On average, the world was 3°C warmer, but in high northern latitudes, it was up to 14°C warmer than today.
Earth’s has gone through major climate changes in the past. They happened on time scales of millions of years and triggered mass extinctions. Our emissions are changing the climate much faster.
Top contributors
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Associate Professor, Earth and Planetary Sciences, Curtin University
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Senior Lecturer in Atmospheric Science, Climate Change Research Centre, UNSW
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Chief Investigator in Antarctic environmental science, Monash University
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Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Cambridge
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Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland
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Professor, Palaeontology, Griffith University
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Professor of Physical Geography (Climate Science), Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington
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Adjunct Professor, University of Queensland, and Professor and Head of School of Earth and Environment, University of Canterbury
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Professor and Director of the Climate Change Research Centre, UNSW, UNSW
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Director, Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution, Griffith University
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Senior Research Scientist, Earth & Biological Sciences, South Australian Museum; Adelaide University
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Adjunct Research Fellow, School of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Curtin University; Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
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Senior scientist, Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland
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Professor of Geochronology, Curtin University
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Lecturer in Mediterranean Prehistory, University of Malta