Earth's Climate History
Explore millions of years of climate change and discover what paleoclimate science tells us about our planet's past
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0 / 5 completedWhy Study Past Climate?
Earth's climate has changed dramatically over its 4.5 billion year history. By studying these changes, we gain critical context for understanding modern climate change and can test our climate models against real-world data spanning hundreds of thousands of years.
Paleoclimate science reveals patterns invisible in the short instrumental record: ice ages and warm periods, CO₂ levels over millennia, and how the climate system responds to different forcings. This historical perspective is essential for predicting future climate change.
📅Interactive Climate Timeline
💡 Key Insight: Ice cores preserve atmospheric samples going back 800,000 years, revealing natural climate cycles and showing that current CO₂ levels (420 ppm) are unprecedented in human history.
Major Climate Periods
How We Know Past Climate
Ice Cores
Ancient ice traps air bubbles preserving atmospheric composition from up to 800,000 years ago
Tree Rings
Annual growth rings record temperature and precipitation patterns with seasonal precision
Sediment Cores
Ocean and lake sediments contain shells and pollen revealing past conditions