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The little ice age

Book ·
OSTI ID:6288160
The Little Ice Age, a period of glacier expansion in alpine regions that began sometime between the twelfth and sixteenth centuries and lasted until late in the nineteenth century, was recorded not only in glacial features dated by geologic techniques but also in historical documents such as field sketches, land values, and weather records, especially in the Alps. Indirect evidence of its impact in other parts of the world includes the records of sea-ice extent near Iceland and Greenland, the fate of the Viking settlements in Greenland, and many other suggestions that the climate was colder in the recent past than it is today. Jean Grove's book is an authoritative, superbly documented, and excellently written summary of the abundant evidence of climatic change during the last few centuries in the context of broader climatic variations of the last 10,000 years. This summary provides a much-needed perspective for considering the magnitude and frequency of natural climatic variations in the past, given predictions for the future. In the final chapter, Grove notes that natural climatic variations, including another minor ice age, might be expected in the future but at the end of the Little Ice Age coincided with the increased burning of fossil fuels during the industralization of Europe and North America. This coincidence does indeed suggest that modern scientists already have had a significant impact on the global climate.
OSTI ID:
6288160
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English