Learning about future climate from Earth's deep past - Multimedia Gallery
Jan 13, 2011 - by Staff
Multimedia Gallery
The magnitude of climate change during Earth’s deep past suggests that future temperatures may eventually rise far more than projected if society continues emitting greenhouse gases at the current pace, a new analysis concludes.
In a "Perspectives" article in Science, Jeffrey Kiehl (NCAR) pulls together several recent studies that look at various aspects of the climate system, while adding a mathematical approach to estimate average global temperatures in the distant past. The analysis of the climate system’s response to elevated levels of carbon dioxide is supported by previous studies.
A pair of chinstrap penguins in Antarctica. New research suggests that, if carbon dioxide emissions continue on their current trajectory, Earth may return to a climate of tens of millions of years ago when the Antarctic ice sheet did not exist. (©UCAR, Photo by Andrew Watt. This image is freely available for media use. For more information, see Media & nonprofit use.*)