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Paleoclimate

One of the limits of climatology is that we only have about a hundred years of scientifically gathered weather data, and we know that they don’t give us the full story. Paleoclimatologists find ways to figure out what the weather was like before we had thermometers, rain gauges, and written records. The natural world has recorded its own stories in tree rings, lake sediments, ice, cave deposits, and fossils, and paleoclimatologists can put that information together to assemble thousands of years of climate history.

The findings of paleoclimatology show that past droughts have been more severe and have lasted even longer than the Dust Bowl in the 1930s or drought in the 1950s – by centuries, in some cases. Paleoclimatology helps us understand the full range of natural variability.

 

Paleoclimatology Introduction
desert landforms with sparse vegetation
An examination of how scientists reconstruct the history of Earth’s climate over hundreds of thousands—in some cases millions—of years.
Paleoclimate Drought Resources
chart of reconstructed annual rainfall over centuries in western New Mexico
Links list offers connections to overviews, reconstructions of past climate conditions and other information from the World Data Center for Climatology.
NOAA Paleoclimatology Data
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Data include geophysical and biological measurement time series, with a list of links to datasets, projects and perspectives about paleoclimatology, including ways to contribute data, education, and outreach.
North American Drought Variability
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Reconstructions of the Palmer Drought Severity Index using tree ring chronologies, with data links, extending back as long as 200 years.
Long-Term Aridity Changes in the Western U.S.
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Abstract and links from key research reconstructing drought over the past 1200 years.
Colorado River Basin Tree Ring Analysis
large river between canyon walls
Selected research papers, reports, and other resources which show the current state-of-knowledge on the variability of climate and hydrology in the Colorado River Basin.
Southwest Paleoclimate
logo of Climates Assessment for the Southwest (CLIMAS)
How scientists use “climate proxies” to reconstruct past events.