Geophysikalisches Kolloquium: Dinosaur forecast: cloudy, and other lessons from past warm climates
The geologic record is a fascinating source for surprising information
on past warm climates. The climate of the Cretaceous and Eocene
(146-34 Million years ago) was exceptionally warm. Crocodiles and
Palm trees, which cannot survive a few nights of sub freezing
temperatures, could be found in the waters of Greenland and in the
middle of present day northern north America, where current winter
temperatures can drop to -40C. The Pliocene (2-5 Myr ago) was only
slightly warmer than present-day climate, but recent evidence shows
that it was characterized by a permanent El Nino in the equatorial
Pacific, where today El Nino occurs only every 4 years. We'll discuss
possible physical mechanism for both of these past warm climates and
the possible implied lessons.
Date
26.11.2009
Time
15:15 h
Place
- Bundesstr. 53, room 022/023
- Seminar Room 022/023, Ground Floor, Bundesstrasse 53, 20146 Hamburg, Hamburg
Speaker
Eli Tziperman, Harvard University, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences