Climate chill came exactly 12,679 years ago: study

OSLO (Reuters) – A drastic cooling of the climate in western Europe happened exactly 12,679 years ago, apparently after a shift to icy winds over the Atlantic, scientists said on Friday, giving a hint of how abruptly the climate can change.

The study, of pollens, minerals and other matter deposited in annual layers at the bottom of Lake Meerfelder Maar in Germany, pinpointed an abrupt change in sediments consistent with a sudden chill over just one year.

The findings adds to evidence about conditions needed for abrupt climate shifts. Some modern scientists fear such wrenching changes may be caused by global warming widely blamed on human emissions of greenhouse gases from fossil fuels.

Some have suggested that a melting of Greenland ice, for instance, could lead to a flow of fresh water into the Atlantic that could also slow down the Gulf Stream current and bring an abrupt chill despite an overall warming trend.

Reuters