Tag

Paleoclimate

All articles tagged with #paleoclimate

science5 days ago•39 min saved

Ancient Sea-Level Maps Reveal Four Rapid Earth Axis Shifts During the Dinosaur Era

A new study in Science identifies four intervals of rapid true polar wander in the last 320 million years, challenging the view that Earth's solid exterior has only shifted slowly. Led by Mathew Domeier at the University of Oslo, the research uses ancient sea-level changes rather than magnetic data to detect these events. The strongest signals occurred during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, suggesting the planet’s crust and mantle reoriented rapidly relative to its spin axis, potentially altering global climate and habitats.

via The Brighter Side of News|

#geophysics #mesozoic-era #paleoclimate

science3 months ago•7 min saved

Lakes Forged by Cosmic Impacts: A Global Tour of Meteor Crater Lakes

Earth hosts around 200 meteor impact craters, but only about 30 contain permanent lakes. The article spotlights seven notable crater lakes—Lake Manicouagan (Canada), Lake Bosomtwe (Ghana), Karakul Lake (Tajikistan), Lonar Lake (India), Mistastin Lake (Canada), Lake Elgygytgyn (Russia), and the Clearwater Lakes (Canada)—explaining how impacts carve basins that fill with water, preserve records of ancient climates, and serve as analogs for planetary geology, while also offering scientific, cultural, and travel value.

via WorldAtlas|

#crater-lakes #lake-manicouagan #lonar-lake

science5 months ago•5 min saved

Malaria as the Invisible Cartographer of Ancient Africa

A Science Advances study shows malaria risk helped shape where Sub-Saharan Africans lived over 74,000 years, using mosquito distribution models and paleoclimate data to compute a 'malaria stability index' and revealing humans avoided high-malaria zones until around 14,000–13,000 years ago, a shift that aligns with the emergence of the sickle cell mutation and highlights disease as a key driver of ancient human geography and population structure.

via Indian Defence Review|

#ancient-human-settlements #anopheles-mosquitoes #malaria

science6 months ago•5 min saved

Humans Are Lengthening Earth's Day, New Study Finds

Researchers show Earth's day is lengthening by about 1.33 milliseconds per century due to climate-driven mass shifts from melting ice, using fossil foraminifera and a physics-informed deep learning model; the trend could soon surpass the Moon's influence, with implications for communications and space navigation, per a Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth study.

via ScienceAlert|

#climate-change #earth-rotation #foraminifera

science1 year ago•5 min saved

Did a Passing Star Trigger Earth's 56-Million-Year Warming?

Recent research suggests that passing stars, or stellar flybys, did not influence Earth's climate over the past 56 million years, including during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, when significant global warming occurred. Advanced models incorporating comprehensive Solar System dynamics show no link between stellar flybys and climate shifts, challenging earlier hypotheses that such events triggered major climatic changes.

via ScienceAlert|

#earths-climate #paleoclimate #petm

science1 year ago•5 min saved

Stellar Flybys and Their Impact on Earth's Climate History

Recent research suggests that stellar flybys have likely not influenced Earth's past climate changes over the last 56 million years, challenging earlier hypotheses. Using comprehensive solar system models, scientists found no significant impact of passing stars on Earth's orbital stability or climate events like the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, emphasizing the importance of detailed modeling in understanding celestial influences on our planet.

via Universe Today|

#earths-climate #oort-cloud #paleoclimate

paleontology2 years ago•5 min saved

Ancient Dinosaur Tracks Uncover Alaska's Lush Environment

A large find of dinosaur tracks and fossilized plants and tree stumps in far northwestern Alaska provides new information about the climate and movement of animals near the time when they began traveling between the Asian and North American continents roughly 100 million years ago. The findings by an international team of scientists led by paleontologist Anthony Fiorillo were published in the journal Geosciences, shedding light on the lush, wet environment of the mid-Cretaceous period and providing insights into the high-latitude ecosystem on a warmer Earth.

via Phys.org|

#alaska #cretaceous-period #dinosaur-tracks

astronomy2 years ago•2 min saved

"Planetary Orbits Altered by Passing Stars"

Earth's orbit around the Sun is influenced by passing stars, affecting its climate and complicating paleoclimate studies. The gravitational tugs of stars like HD 7977 can significantly alter Earth's orbit, introducing uncertainties in paleoclimate conclusions. This challenges previous models linking Earth's eccentric orbit to events like the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, suggesting that passing stars may have played a more significant role in shaping the planet's climate than previously thought.

via Universe Today|

#astronomy #earths-orbit #gravitational-effects

science-and-history2 years ago•5 min saved

"Roman Empire's Pandemics Linked to Climate Change"

A study analyzing climatic conditions in southern Italy from 200 B.C.E. to 600 C.E. suggests that even mild climate changes can impact human health, with pandemic outbreaks in ancient Rome associated with cold snaps. The research reveals correlations between phases of climate change and episodes of acute health crises, emphasizing the potential impact of climate swings on human bodies, pathogens, and responses to pathogens. The study sheds light on the association between Rome's expansion and stable weather, the gradual decline of this pattern, and fluctuation in weather through the later Roman imperial period, culminating in the Late Antique Little Ice Age.

via Haaretz|

#ancient-rome #climate-change #health-crisis