Alley studies ice cores like those from Greenland which contain both paleoclimate information and annual layers. According to these, the Earth has recently (last 10-14,000 years) undergone very rapid and extreme climate changes (3 years for the last ice age to end). Currently, Earth's climate is warming gradually, but feedbacks in the climate system can lead to very abrupt changes, creating further change and possible catastrophes in the biosphere, oceans, and on land.
ISBN 0-691-10296-1
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This resource is referenced here:Resource Type:
Scientific Resources:Overview/Reference Work, Book
Research on Learning:
Geoscience Expertise:Drawing Inferences,
Geologic Time,
Complex Systems
Keywords: climate change, global warming, Pleistocence, Holocene, Earth history, ice cores, Earth system science