Ice cores unlock climate secrets

[Ivan Seeking]

Global climate patterns stretching back 740,000 years have been confirmed by a three-kilometre-long ice core drilled from the Antarctic, Nature reports.

Analysis of the ice proves our planet has had eight ice ages during that period, punctuated by rather brief warm spells - one of which we enjoy today. If past patterns are followed in the future, we can expect our "mild snap" to last another 15,000 years. The data may also help predict how greenhouse gases will affect climate.

Initial tests on gas trapped in the ice core show that current carbon dioxide (CO2) levels are higher than they have been in 440,000 years.

Nobody quite knows how this will alter our climate, but researchers hope a detailed picture of past fluctuations will give them a better idea. [continued]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3792209.stm

 

[Andre]

Deuterium is a heavy isotope of hydrogen. If a sample of ice has a lot of it, that means the temperature was warmer - and vice versa.

That's exactly the line of reasoning that I'm cautioning against here.

The ice core is a real paper generator, a zillion abstracts about it here:
http://www.phys.uu.nl/~wwwimau/research/ice_climate/epica/publications/home.html

Lots of work to do.