Under a White Sky

I kept coming across a similar pattern: events, well-documented in the historic record, that showed how rising and falling precipitation levels contributed to the increase, decrease, and sometimes the complete removal of populations — and ultimately species — from the planet. This was some of the earliest work of its kind.

There have clearly been times in the past when major climate shifts have happened over short timescales – over just decades – certainly within the span of a human lifetime.

The deep-sea cores and ice cores have revealed that climate change could indeed be incredibly rapid – just as Russell Coope had predicted – with big swings happening in just decades. As we look deep into the past, over vast stretches of time, the apparent stability of geography and climate that we perceive as individuals melts away, and we see inst