Many scientists think our climate is changing — and changing fast! — because of things we do. Studying what climate was like and what changes have happened in the past helps scientists understand things like:
- How climate works
- How climate affects plants and animals, and
- What things can cause climate to change, such as gases in the air.
Dr. Fir can use the info to compare what's going on today with what happend ten years ago, hundreds of years ago, or even millions of years ago! The info from the past can be used to help scientists figure out what could happen in the future if the temperature goes up from people putting so many greenhouse gases into the air. It can help them understand how climate could change and what it could do to plants and animals.
Things scientists study to learn about climate in the past include:
- Ice cores from the Antarctic and Greenland.
(They study bubbles of gas trapped in the ice.) - Pollen from the bottom of lakes.
- Fossil records of insects.
- Growth rings of trees.
