To understand changes in our climate, USGS scientists are synthesizing long-term data sets, including geologic records that can extend over millions of years. Paleoclimatology, in particular, uses evidence of past climate change preserved in sediments, rocks, tree rings, corals, ice sheets and other climate archives to reconstruct how climates varied in the past.
USGS Paleoclimate Research: Lessons from the Past, Roadmap for the Future
The USGS Paleoclimate Research team is studying Paleoclimate around the world from Arctic Ocean sea ice to Pacific Ocean Climate Variability to Paleohydrology of Desert Wetlands.
Proxies (physical, chemical and biological materials preserved within the geologic record) being used by the team include
- Physical: sediment composition, texture, structure, color, density, and magnetic properties
- Biological: remains of living organisms, such as pollen, foraminifera, mollusks, and ostracodes
- Chemical: stable isotope, elemental composition, and organic biomarkers
Archives being used include
- Sediments
- Ice Cores
- Tree Rings
- Speleothems
- Corals
- Packrat middens
Western Mountain Initiative (WMI)
WMI is a team of USGS, US Forest Service, and university scientists working to understand and predict the responses of western mountain ecosystems to climatic variability and change, emphasizing sensitivities, thresholds, and resilience. Current WMI research priorities are forest vegetation and disturbance, mountain hydrology, and ecohydrology, with the goals of 1) determining the vulnerability (i.e. rapidity and magnitude of change) of forest and hydrologic processes to climate-induced changes, and 2) developing methodologies for adaptation that are tailored to watershed- and regional-scale issues. Ongoing WMI research tasks include:
- Cross-site comparisons of forest dynamics across 7 Western states, and projecting forest changes into the future.
- Quantify variability in fire severity among mountain ecosystems in response to climate change, particularly the duration and intensity of summer drought and extreme weather.
- Identify how climate-based stresses on trees and climate effects on insect populations combine to affect insect outbreaks and forest mortality.
- Quantify effects of fires and insect outbreaks on forest carbon dynamics in the western states, and project future forest carbon sequestration.
- Analyze trends in timing and magnitude of snowpack accumulation and ablation and mountain hydrology for five national parks, and project future trends.
- Develop mass balances for glacier bodies across the conterminous US, and forecast rates of glacier recession.
- Survey changes in water quality from glacier and cryospheric wasting, and produce maps and forecasts of the risks to water quality and aquatic ecosystems from heavy metals and nutrients in the western US.
Paleoclimate Variability of the American Southwest
Landscapes and ecosystems in the American Southwest are under pressure from expanding populations and increased demands for water. Most climate models predict that this region, especially the Mojave Desert, will experience warmer temperatures in the coming century. However, the models do not agree on predictions of how future precipitation may vary. We will determine how climate conditions in general, and precipitation in particular, have changed over time in the American Southwest. The results of our studies will allow us to define the extent of natural climate variability inherent to the region, improve our understanding of how ecosystems responded to past extreme events such as megadroughts, and aid in predicting the potential effects that climate change may have on desert landscapes and biota. This information is critical to land use and water resource managers in preparing adaptation and mitigation strategies for life under future, potentially extreme, climate conditions.
To understand changes in our climate, USGS scientists are synthesizing long-term data sets, including geologic records that can extend over millions of years. Paleoclimatology, in particular, uses evidence of past climate change preserved in sediments, rocks, tree rings, corals, ice sheets and other climate archives to reconstruct how climates varied in the past.
USGS Paleoclimate Research: Lessons from the Past, Roadmap for the Future
The USGS Paleoclimate Research team is studying Paleoclimate around the world from Arctic Ocean sea ice to Pacific Ocean Climate Variability to Paleohydrology of Desert Wetlands.
Proxies (physical, chemical and biological materials preserved within the geologic record) being used by the team include
- Physical: sediment composition, texture, structure, color, density, and magnetic properties
- Biological: remains of living organisms, such as pollen, foraminifera, mollusks, and ostracodes
- Chemical: stable isotope, elemental composition, and organic biomarkers
Archives being used include
- Sediments
- Ice Cores
- Tree Rings
- Speleothems
- Corals
- Packrat middens
Western Mountain Initiative (WMI)
WMI is a team of USGS, US Forest Service, and university scientists working to understand and predict the responses of western mountain ecosystems to climatic variability and change, emphasizing sensitivities, thresholds, and resilience. Current WMI research priorities are forest vegetation and disturbance, mountain hydrology, and ecohydrology, with the goals of 1) determining the vulnerability (i.e. rapidity and magnitude of change) of forest and hydrologic processes to climate-induced changes, and 2) developing methodologies for adaptation that are tailored to watershed- and regional-scale issues. Ongoing WMI research tasks include:
- Cross-site comparisons of forest dynamics across 7 Western states, and projecting forest changes into the future.
- Quantify variability in fire severity among mountain ecosystems in response to climate change, particularly the duration and intensity of summer drought and extreme weather.
- Identify how climate-based stresses on trees and climate effects on insect populations combine to affect insect outbreaks and forest mortality.
- Quantify effects of fires and insect outbreaks on forest carbon dynamics in the western states, and project future forest carbon sequestration.
- Analyze trends in timing and magnitude of snowpack accumulation and ablation and mountain hydrology for five national parks, and project future trends.
- Develop mass balances for glacier bodies across the conterminous US, and forecast rates of glacier recession.
- Survey changes in water quality from glacier and cryospheric wasting, and produce maps and forecasts of the risks to water quality and aquatic ecosystems from heavy metals and nutrients in the western US.
Paleoclimate Variability of the American Southwest
Landscapes and ecosystems in the American Southwest are under pressure from expanding populations and increased demands for water. Most climate models predict that this region, especially the Mojave Desert, will experience warmer temperatures in the coming century. However, the models do not agree on predictions of how future precipitation may vary. We will determine how climate conditions in general, and precipitation in particular, have changed over time in the American Southwest. The results of our studies will allow us to define the extent of natural climate variability inherent to the region, improve our understanding of how ecosystems responded to past extreme events such as megadroughts, and aid in predicting the potential effects that climate change may have on desert landscapes and biota. This information is critical to land use and water resource managers in preparing adaptation and mitigation strategies for life under future, potentially extreme, climate conditions.