Paleoclimatology

Raymond S. Bradley provides his readers with a comprehensive and up-to-date review of all of the important methods used in paleoclimatic reconstruction, dating and paleoclimate modeling. Two comprehensive chapters on dating methods provide the foundation for all paleoclimatic studies and are followed by up-to-date coverage of ice core research, continental geological and biological records, pollen analysis, radiocarbon dating, tree rings and historical records. New methods using alkenones in marine sediments and coral studies are also described. Paleoclimatology, Second Edition, is an essential textbook for advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students studying climatology, paleoclimatology and paleooceanography worldwide, as well as a valuable reference for lecturers and researchers, appealing to archaeologists and scientists interested in environmental change.

• Contains two up-to-date chapters on dating methods
• Consists of the latest coverage of ice core research, marine sediment and coral studies, continental geological and biological records, pollen analysis, tree rings, and historical records
• Describes the newest methods using alkenones in marine sediments and long continental pollen records
• Addresses all important methods used in paleoclimatic reconstruction
• Includes an extensive chapter on the use of models in paleoclimatology
• Extensive and up-to-date bibliography
• Illustrated with numerous comprehensive figure captions

Autorentext

Raymond S. Bradley has been involved in many national and international activities related to paleoclimatology, most notably as the current Chair of the Scientific Steering Committee for the International Geosphere-Biosphere Program on Past Global Changes (IGBP-PAGES). He has published dozens of articles in scientific journals, and has edited several important books in paleoclimatology. The first edition of Quaternary Paleoclimatology has been the definitive text in this field for over a decade. His research is in climatology, specifically in climatic change and the evidence for how the earth's climate has varied in the past. He has carried out research on climate variation, both on the long (glacial and interglacial) time-scale and on the short (historical and instrumental) time-scale, involving the analysis of data from all over the world. In recent years he has been involved in studies of natural climate variability, to provide a background for understanding potential anthropogenic changes in climate resulting from rapid increases in "greenhouse gases" over the last century or so. R.S. Bradley has been a professor in the Department of Geosciences, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA, since 1984. He has been Head of the Department of Geosciences since 1993. Additionally, he is a member of Clare Hall at Cambridge.

Inhalt

Preface.
Acknowledgments.
Paleoclimatic Reconstruction.
Introduction.
Sources Of Paleoclimatic Information.
Levels Of Paleoclimatic Analysis.
Modeling In Paleoclimatic Research.
Climate And Climatic Variation.
The Nature Of Climate And Climatic Variation.
The Climate System.
Feedback Mechanisms.
Energy Balance Of The Earth And Its Atmosphere. Timescales Of Climatic Variation.
Variations Of The Earth's Orbital Parameters. Dating Methods I.
Introduction And Overview.
Radioisotopic Methods.
Dating Methods II.
Paleomagnetism.
Dating Methods Involving Chemical Changes. Biological Dating Methods.
Ice Cores.
Introduction.
Stable Isotope Analysis.
Dating Ice Cores.
Paleoclimatic Reconstruction From Ice Cores.
Marine Sediments And Corals.
Introduction.
Paleoclimatic Information From Biological Material In Ocean Cores.
Oxygen Isotope Studies Of Calcareous Marine Fauna. Relative Abundance Studies.
Paleotemperature Records From Alkenones. Dissolution Of Deep-Sea Carbonates.
Paleoclimatic Information From Inorganic Material In Ocean Cores.
Coral Records Of Past Climate.
Thermohaline Circulation Of The Oceans.
Ocean Circulation Changes And Climate Over The Last Glacial-Interglacial Cycle.
Changes In Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide: The Role of the Oceans.
Orbital Forcing: Evidence From The Marine Record.
Non-Marine Geological Evidence.
Introduction.
Loess.
Periglacial Features.
Snowlines And Glaciation Thresholds.
Mountain Glacier Fluctuations.
Lake-Level Fluctuations.
Lake Sediments.
Speleothems.
Non-Marine Biological Evidence.
Introduction.
Former Vegetation Distribution From Plant Macrofossils.
Insects.
Pollen Analysis.
Introduction.
The Basis Of Pollen Analysis.
How Rapidly Does Vegetation Respond To Changes In Climate?
Pollen Analysis Of A Site: The Pollen Diagram. Mapping Vegetation Change: Isopolls And Isochrones.
Quantitative Paleoclimatic Reconstructions Based On Pollen Analysis.
Paleoclimatic Reconstruction From Long Quaternary Pollen Records.
Dendroclimatology.
Introduction.
Fundamentals Of Dendroclimatology.
Dendroclimatic Reconstructions.
Isotope Dendroclimatology.
Documentary Data:
Introduction.
Historical Records And Their Interpretation. Regional Studies Based On Historical Records.
Records Climate Forcing Factors.
Paleoclimate Models
Introduction.
Types Of Models.
Sensitivity Experiments Using General Circulation Models.
Model Simulations: 18ka B.P. To The Present.
Coupled Ocean-Atmosphere Model Experiments Of The Thermohaline Circulation.
GCM Paleoclimate Simulations And The Paleo Record. Appendix A: Further Considerations On Radiocarbon Dating
Calculation Of Radiocarbon Age And Standardization Procedure.
Fractionation Effects.
World Wide Web-Based Resources In Paleoclimatology
References.
Index.