History detective helps scientists rewrite climate records

A University of Nottingham historian has helped resolve a global debate about scientific evidence for ancient extreme climate events by examining medieval manuscripts and other historical sources. In a paper published in the world-leading scientific journal, Nature , Dr Conor Kostick 's research into medieval evidence for climate events has allowed scientists to pinpoint the exact relationship between historical volcanic activity and severe winters. Climate science has made major steps forward in recent years as data collection from natural sources such as tree-rings, ice cores and mineral cave formations has become more and more sophisticated. Much can be learned about the Earth's changing climate from analysing the chemicals found in ice cores, for example, and a crucial phenomenon affecting climate is volcanic eruption. Rewriting climate history. Scientists know that a major volcanic eruption can have significant cooling effects because its smoke plume injects sulphur particles into the atmosphere which reflects sunlight away from the planet. But w hat is the past history of such volcanic climate forcing? Most climate scientists believe it played a part in creating some of the cold years faced by our predecessors, such as 536 CE when a cloud covered Europe for a year, with disastrous consequences.