{"id":3083,"date":"2011-11-10T12:27:02","date_gmt":"2011-11-10T18:27:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/barbadamslive.com\/?page_id=3083"},"modified":"2012-02-05T08:59:45","modified_gmt":"2012-02-05T14:59:45","slug":"ice-core-samples-provide-evidence-of-major-climate-flip-5200-years-ago","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/barbadamslive.com\/?page_id=3083","title":{"rendered":"Articles on Abrupt Climate Change"},"content":{"rendered":"

ICE CORES MAY YIELD CLUES TO 5,000-YEAR-OLD MYSTERY<\/h3>\n

See Full Article at http:\/\/researchnews.osu.edu\/archive\/quelcoro.htm<\/a><\/p>\n

The latest expeditions to ice caps in the high, tropical Peruvian Andes by Ohio State University scientists may shed light on a global climate change they believe occurred more than 5,000 years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
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Lonnie Thompson<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

The scientists hope to retrieve samples from ice caps as well as study plants from beneath the glaciers in hopes of finding clues about events which occurred in South America, Europe, and Asia.<\/p>\n

Lonnie Thompson, Professor of geological sciences at Ohio State,<\/a> believes something happened very abruptly approximately 5,200 years ago that affected a very large area.<\/p>\n

In September, Thompson returned from Peru after having drilled three core samples from Nevado Coropuna<\/a>, an extinct volcano in the Cordillera Occidental<\/a> of the Andes.\u00a0 The third core is important as it may provide the climate history for this area for the last 2,000 years or more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Map showing most recent and past drill sites Thompson’s team has drilled in Peru.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

This third core could also contain information which dates back more than 10,000 years and would provide much needed data to help understand the climate changes in this region of the world, including changes in El Nino and La Nina.<\/p>\n

Thompson and his team have frequented this site many times over the past several decades, drilling other ice core samples in hopes of revealing annual records of climate dating back for more than 1,000 years.\u00a0 They also collected a sample from the summit which they hope will reveal annual records dating back more than 2,000 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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In 2002, Thompson and his team discovered a plant that had been perfectly preserved in ice, which DNA testing dated to 5,200 years ago.\u00a0 This is important, as something happened so abruptly that the plant was “captured” without being killed.\u00a0 What it indicates is that climate change happened very abruptly.<\/p>\n

This year, Thompson and his fellow researchers found a second plant in the ice field approximately 4 miles from the first plant.\u00a0 Thompson believes the second plant may provide very important data about the site.<\/p>\n

Carbon dating of the second plant showed that it had been buried some 2,200 years ago, indicating another abrupt climate change.<\/p>\n

The ice caps in the area are also retreating rapidly.\u00a0 When Thompson began surveying the area, the glaciers were retreating at about 15.4 feet per year.\u00a0 More recently, they are retreating almost 672 feet per year–an increase of more than 40 times as fast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Researchers found a plant deposit this year, revealed when the margin of the Quelccaya Ice Cap retreated. It was the second such find in the last two years.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

At least 70% of all tropical ice on Earth is trapped in the Peruvian glaciers and ice fields.\u00a0 Thompson and his team are fighting time to retrieve core samples from this region before the thousands of years of climate history contained within them is gone.\u00a0 And of utmost urgency is explaining what happened 5,200 years ago.<\/p>\n

Little is known about abrupt climate changes in the tropics.\u00a0 But what is known is that if climate change happened very abruptly in the past, then it might happen again.\u00a0 And it would mean world-wide chaos, both socially and economically, as much of the world’s population lives in the tropics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Most of the studies on climate change have focused on greenhouse gases and a gradual increase in global temperatures.\u00a0 Recent evidence demonstrates that Earth’s climate repeatedly has shifted dramatically in time spans as short as a decade.\u00a0 Abrupt climate change may be more likely in the future.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>January 9, 2009<\/span>
\nOcean Conveyor’s ‘Pump’ Switches Back On<\/a><\/span>
\nThe sinking of cold waters in the North Atlantic Ocean, which helps power global ocean circulation, had largely stalled since the mid-1990s, as the world warmed. To the surprise of scientists, it revved up again last winter\u2014displaying once again just how complex the interactions between air, ocean, and ice really are.
\nSource:\u00a0Oceanus Magazine<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>January 5, 2007<\/span>
\nSunspots, Sea Changes, and Climate Shifts<\/a><\/span>
\nSometimes, clues to environmental conditions in Earth’s past tell conflicting stories and point to competing mechanisms for change.
\nSource:\u00a0Oceanus Magazine<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>September 6, 2007<\/span>
\nInterrogating the ‘Great Ocean Conveyor’<\/a><\/span>
\nThe Greenland-Scotland Ridge stretches across the North Atlantic Ocean seafloor like a checkpoint regulating the two-way flow of ocean currents between the Nordic Seas and the Arctic Ocean to the north and the main body of the Atlantic to the south.
\nSource:\u00a0Oceanus Magazine<\/span><\/p>\n

\"North<\/a>November 16, 2006<\/span>
\nThe Once and Future Circulation of the Ocean<\/a><\/span>
\nDid changes in ocean circulation play a role in melting the vast ice sheets that covered North America and Europe during the last ice age? Could global warming cause ocean circulation changes that lead to dramatic climate changes in the future?
\nSource:\u00a0Oceanus Magazine<\/span><\/p>\n

\"map\"<\/a>January 23, 2006<\/span>
\nIs Global Warming Changing the Arctic?<\/a><\/span>
\nIn the Arctic, the air, sea ice, and underlying ocean all interact in a delicately balanced system. Four ambitious Arctic projects are pulling back the icy veil that shrouds our understanding of the Arctic Ocean\u2019s role in our climate system. (First of a five-part series.)
\nSource:\u00a0Oceanus Magazine<\/span><\/p>\n

\"What's<\/a>June 1, 2004<\/span>
\nWhat’s After the Day After Tomorrow?<\/a><\/span>
\nA science perspective on the science fiction movie.<\/p>\n

\"Common<\/a>June 1, 2004<\/span>
\nCommon Misconceptions about Abrupt Climate Change<\/a><\/span>
\nSeveral decades of scientific research have yielded significant advances in understanding the ocean’s role in regulating Earth’s climate. This summary covers some of the major points about abrupt climate change that are often misunderstood.<\/p>\n

\"hot<\/a>February 17, 2006<\/span>
\nAn Ocean Warmer Than a Hot Tub<\/a><\/span>
\nNew evidence from ancient seafloor sediments suggests that current climate forecasting models may underestimate future ocean warming caused by the buildup of greenhouse gases.
\nSource:\u00a0Oceanus Magazine<\/span><\/p>\n

\"<\/a>November 1, 2003<\/span>
\nA River Runs Through It<\/a><\/span>
\nIn the northwestern Atlantic Ocean, along the edge of the U.S. continental shelf, some of the most important currents in the world are flowing.<\/p>\n

\"Abrupt<\/a>February 10, 2003<\/span>
\nAbrupt Climate Change: Should We Be Worried?<\/a><\/span>
\nA World Economic Forum white paper by WHOI President and Director Robert Gagosian presented in Davos, Switzerland, January 27, 2003<\/p>\n

\"Are<\/a>February 10, 2003<\/span>
\nAre We on the Brink of a ‘New Little Ice Age?’<\/a><\/span>
\nThe authors discuss the paradox that global warming could, counterintuitively, instigate a new \u2018Little Ice Age\u2019 in the northern hemisphere.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>April 18, 2002<\/span>
\nThe Heat Before the Cold<\/a><\/span>
\nA New York Times<\/em> Op-Ed by WHOI Scientist Terrence Joyce<\/p>\n

\"<\/a>December 1, 1996<\/span>
\nSedimentary Record Yields Several Centuries of Data<\/a><\/span>
\nNatural climate changes like the Little Ice Age and the Medieval Warm Period are of interest for a few reasons. First, they occur on decade to century time scales, a gray zone in the spectrum of climate change. Accurate instrumental data do not extend back far enough to document the beginning of these events, and historical data are often of questionable accuracy and are not widespread geographically.
\nSource:\u00a0Oceanus Magazine<\/span><\/p>\n

WHOI News Releases<\/h5>\n

\"Fine-tuning<\/a>December 7, 2005<\/span>
\nFine-tuning the Steps in the Intricate Climate Change Dance<\/a><\/span>
\nNew scientific findings are strengthening the case that rapid climate change may be related to how vigorously ocean currents move heat between low and high latitude.
\nSource:\u00a0Media Relations<\/span><\/p>\n

\"freshwater_callout.jpg\"<\/a>June 16, 2005<\/span>
\nHow Much Excess Fresh Water Was Added to the North Atlantic in Recent Decades?<\/a><\/span>
\nContinued Freshening of the North Atlantic Could Slow the Conveyor in the 21st Century<\/em>
\nSource:\u00a0Media Relations<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Map\"<\/a>April 21, 2004<\/span>
\nRate of Ocean Circulation Directly Linked to Abrupt Climate Change in North Atlantic Region<\/a><\/span>
\nSource:\u00a0Media Relations<\/span><\/p>\n

\"<\/a>May 28, 2004<\/span>
\nTropical Plants Help Identify Lags Between Abrupt Climate and Vegetation Shifts in Different Parts of the World<\/a><\/span>
\nClues to the timing and cause of abrupt climate changes in the past may lie in ocean floor sediments, according to a study by scientists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
\nSource:\u00a0Media Relations<\/span><\/p>\n

\"World<\/a>December 17, 2003<\/span>
\nNew Study Reports Large-scale Salinity Changes in the Oceans<\/a><\/span>
\nSource:\u00a0Media Relations<\/span><\/p>\n

Testimonies & Briefings<\/h5>\n

\"Bigger<\/a>September 20, 2004<\/span>
\nBigger Hurricanes: A Consequence of Climate Change?<\/a><\/span>
\nIn the wake of three destructive hurricanes that pummeled Florida and Caribbean islands this fall, WHOI Research Specialist Ruth Curry (PO) flew to Washington DC on September 20 to brief members of Congress on extreme weather events and climate instability.<\/p>\n

\"Testimony<\/a>May 6, 2004<\/span>
\nTestimony to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation<\/a><\/span>
\nFormer OCCI Director, William Curry, describes changes in the ocean that have been detected in only the last two years and discusses possible ocean and climate changes that may occur in the future if the planet continues to warm.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>July 18, 2000<\/span>
\nThe Ocean’s Role in Climate<\/a><\/span>
\nTestimony to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation from WHOI scientist Raymond W. Schmitt<\/p>\n

Research Projects<\/h5>\n

\"BillAssessing Rapid Climate Change during the last Intergracial with a new approach to Sea Level Reconstruction<\/span>
\nBill Curry and William Thompson Ocean and Climate Change Institute funded research.
\n\u00bb Visit Website<\/a><\/p>\n

\"FiammettaMeasuring the Freshwater Flux through Hudson Strait<\/span>
\nFiammetta Straneo
\n\u00bb Visit Website<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ICE CORES MAY YIELD CLUES TO 5,000-YEAR-OLD MYSTERY See Full Article at http:\/\/researchnews.osu.edu\/archive\/quelcoro.htm The latest expeditions to ice caps in the high, tropical Peruvian Andes by Ohio State University scientists may shed light on a global climate change they believe occurred more than 5,000 years ago. Lonnie Thompson The scientists hope to retrieve samples from […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":{"0":"post-3083","1":"page","2":"type-page","3":"status-publish","5":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/barbadamslive.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3083","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/barbadamslive.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/barbadamslive.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/barbadamslive.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/barbadamslive.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3083"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/barbadamslive.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3083\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3795,"href":"https:\/\/barbadamslive.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3083\/revisions\/3795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/barbadamslive.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3083"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}