The Cambrian Explosion, part 3: Small shellies and small skeletons
The first 20-million years of the Cambrian appears to be an empty void between the Ediacarans from the previous post and the well known Cambrians. But pull out the looking […]
Category Archives: Climate change
The Cambrian Explosion, part 2: The softies of Ediacara
For a long time, geologists logically set the dawn of the Cambrian at the first fossils, at the trilobites and their friends, which we met in the first post. But […]
What geology can teach us about climate change: On wine, vikings and ice skating (and big, bad volcanoes)
“The medieval warm period” was the time when English kings grew their own wine, and Vikings settled on Greenland. It lasted three centuries from around 950 to 1250, when climate […]
What geology can teach us about climate change: The Earth’s drunkard walk between warm and cold
In the previous posts, we looked at how the big theater of plate tectonics has created both ice ages and hot greenhouses on Earth. Now, we will get back to […]
What geology can teach us about climate change: How CO2 saved the Earth from eternal winter – and nearly boiled it later
Environmental activists sometimes scare us with the prospect of a runaway greenhouse: If we continue to spew out CO2, the Earth may become so hot that it is uninhabitable. Looking […]
What geology can teach us about climate change: How to make an ice age
Climate change is a confusing topic. The environmental movement with Greta Jeanne D’Arc Thunberg in front can give the impression that climate has been nice and stable since times long […]