Climate Proxies
Part of Hall of Planet Earth.
AMNH/D. Finnin
Studying Past Climate
How do we know how climate changed in the distant past? One way is by taking samples of sediment from the bottom of lakes and oceans, where dust, pollen and shells accumulate in fine layers over millions of years. Sediment cores, along with rocks, organisms and even large landforms can contain clues to the way climate has shaped Earth.
In This Section
Exhibit
Coral Core
This section of a coral colony recorded conditions in the eastern Pacific Ocean during at least 10 El Niño events.
Deep-sea Sediment Core Model
The segment of sediment core modeled here shows 3,000 years of changing climate.
Exhibit
Lake Sediment Core Model
This model represents part of a 3.6million year sediment record from far northeastern Siberia, Russia.
Grooved boulder
Rocks and pebbles embedded in the underside of flowing glaciers created the grooves, called glacial striations, on the surface of...
Exhibit
Tree Cross Section
This cross-section of a chestnut oak (Quercus montana) from eastern Kentucky is a 283-year chronicle of local climate.
Exhibit
Tree Core
This core represents a continuous record of climate in the Hudson River Valley.