Is this finally proof we're NOT causing global warming? The whole of the Earth heated up in medieval times without human CO2 emissions, says new study

  • Evidence was found in a rare mineral that records global temperatures
  • Warming was global and NOT limited to Europe
  • Throws doubt on orthodoxies around 'global warming'

By Ted Thornhill

PUBLISHED: 07:21 EST, 26 March 2012 | UPDATED: 07:55 EST, 26 March 2012

Current theories of the causes and impact of global warming have been thrown into question by a new study which shows that during medieval times the whole of the planet heated up.

It then cooled down naturally and there was even a 'mini ice age'.

A team of scientists led by geochemist Zunli Lu from Syracuse University in New York state, has found that contrary to the ‘consensus’, the ‘Medieval Warm Period’ approximately 500 to 1,000 years ago wasn’t just confined to Europe.

In fact, it extended all the way down to Antarctica – which means that the Earth has already experience global warming without the aid of human CO2 emissions.

Cold facts: Antarctica actually warmed up during medieval times, contrary to what climate scientists believe

Cold facts: Antarctica actually warmed up during medieval times, contrary to what climate scientists believe

At present the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) argues that the Medieval Warm Period was confined to Europe – therefore that the warming we’re experiencing now is a man-made phenomenon.

 

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However, Professor Lu has shown that this isn’t true – and the evidence lies with a rare mineral called ikaite, which forms in cold waters.

‘Ikaite is an icy version of limestone,’ said Lu. ‘The crystals are only stable under cold conditions and actually melt at room temperature.’

It turns out the water that holds the crystal structure together - called the hydration water - traps information about temperatures present when the crystals formed.

This finding by Lu's research team establishes, for the first time, ikaite as a reliable way to study past climate conditions.

Evidence that the Earth heated up over a 1,000 years ago was found in a rare mineral called ikaite

Evidence that the Earth heated up over a 1,000 years ago was found in a rare mineral called ikaite

The scientists studied ikaite crystals from sediment cores drilled off the coast of Antarctica. The sediment layers were deposited over 2,000 years.

The scientists were particularly interested in crystals found in layers deposited during the ‘Little Ice Age,’ approximately 300 to 500 years ago, and during the Medieval Warm Period before it.

Both climate events have been documented in Northern Europe, but studies have been inconclusive as to whether the conditions in Northern Europe extended to Antarctica.

Lu’s team found that in fact, they did.

They were able to deduce this by studying the amount of heavy oxygen isotopes found in the crystals.

During cool periods there are lots, during warm periods there aren’t.

‘We showed that the Northern European climate events influenced climate conditions in Antarctica,’ Lu says. ‘More importantly, we are extremely happy to figure out how to get a climate signal out of this peculiar mineral. A new proxy is always welcome when studying past climate changes.’

The research was recently published online in the journal Earth And Planetary Science Letters and will appear in print on April 1.

 
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Oh no tell me its not so?!?!?!?! Al Gore will be so disappointed!!!!

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@- Tom, London, 27/3/2012 01:24 - Well, keep on laughing! You didn't even read the next sentence after the one you quoted! As in: "Both climate events have been documented in Northern Europe, but studies have been inconclusive as to whether the conditions in Northern Europe extended to Antarctica. Lu’s team found that in fact, they did. " Bwahahahahaha!

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Hummm..a story from the DM...to be released on April 1...two strikes. I think I'll wait for the article when it's published in Science on the 3rd or 4th. Probably Snooki will be in it

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.You don't really understand irony do you George? Like most zealots you seem to have lost your sense of humour along the way. - Trust me, I'm a climate scientist, --------------------- Ah, neat get out. Make a claim you can't substantiate, then claim it was a joke.... - George, Durham, 27/3/2012 2:04............Oh dear - Irony and jokes are totally separate things George. The name I used was an ironic dig at AGW fanatics. I certainly don't need to joke about the fact of the well documented Cretaceous period, or the Met Office temperature graph.

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The global warming myth is a money making racket designed to extract more profits and taxes through fear mongering. Just ignore it and in a couple or three years it will fade away and some new 'end of the world' scenario will replaced it. We've had about a dozen of these government sponsored fear/control propaganda myths in my lifetime. Who know's what the next great porkie pie will be. Just bear in mind that they are all designed to keep you fearful, compliant and taxable to the max.

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.You don't really understand irony do you George? Like most zealots you seem to have lost your sense of humour along the way. - Trust me, I'm a climate scientist, --------------------- Ah, neat get out. Make a claim you can't substantiate, then claim it was a joke....

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The real cause of Global Warming is all the hot air from all the Chicken Littles who rush to judgement. Trust me, it's not the end of the world, it's only a billion dollar scam: thank you Al Gore me to death

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:::::: We already know CO2 is the culprit. Please don't try to educate us :::::: Education, to you, is something that happens to other people, isn't it. Head. Banging. Brick wall

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Trust me, I'm a climate scientist, 27/3/2012 1:43 ----------------- No you're not. - George, Durham, 27/3/2012 1:46..........You don't really understand irony do you George? Like most zealots you seem to have lost your sense of humour along the way.

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:::::: "And i bet not one of you deniers has even read Zunli Lu's paper... well done DM, miss reported the facts again... "Both climate events have been documented in Northern Europe, but studies have been INCONCLUSIVE as to whether the conditions in Northern Europe extended to Antarctica..." end quote ...honestly i only come here for the laugh's.....":::::: The DM HAS NOT mis-represented Prof. Lu's findings. The clear inference is that PREVIOUS studies had been inconclusive. I have seen Prof. Lu's paper elsewhere and his study shows that warming extended to The Antarctic, which was postulated but not previously known for certain

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