As they grow or are deposited, tree rings, corals, rock layers, and ice all have the potential to record key climate indicators. Scientists study these records in order to learn how Earth's climate varies over time. This is a drilling site located deep in the interior of Greenland, on the Greenland Ice Sheet, where scientists have drilled through the nearly two kilometer-thick ice sheet. The Greenland ice core records Earth’s climate over the past 200,000 years, providing an invaluable record. The last ice age, the onset of the industrial revolution, and the Clean Air Act enacted by the United States Congress in 1974, are all visible in this rich data record. [from Q page]

The boulders collected on the expeditions below tell stories of the powerful forces of the ocean and atmosphere and how climate has evolved.