‘Monumental’ climatic change had massive human impact

SOMETHING sudden and catastrophic happened to the Earth’s climate about 5,000 years ago, scientists claimed yesterday.

New evidence suggests that a “monumental” change occurred which would have had a major impact on emerging cultures at the time.

The scientists, from Ohio State University in Columbus, in the United States, believe history could be repeating itself today.

And they warn that the lesson from the past is to beware of “tweaking” the planet’s finely tuned climate system, which can have drastic consequences.

Data from sources ranging from ancient frozen plants to ice core records and pollen deposits suggest a sudden drop in temperature 5,200 years ago followed by a brief surge.

The most likely explanation is a huge solar oscillation which caused the Sun’s energy output to fall precipitously and then flare up.

This had a devastating impact on Earth, the research suggests.

Professor Lonnie Thompson, who led the study presenting at a meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco, said: “Something happened back at this time and it was monumental.

But it didn’t seem monumental to humans then because there were only approximately 250 million people occupying the planet, compared to the 6.4 billion we now have.

“The evidence clearly points back to some event that occurred. It also points to similar changes occurring in today’s climate. These are things we really need to be concerned about.”

One finding supporting the theory was the discovery of perfectly preserved plants that emerged from a massive retreating glacier in the Peruvian Andes.

Carbon dating showed the plants had been buried in ice for about 5,200 years.

The climate had to have shifted suddenly and severely for the ice to capture the plants.

The preserved body of a man who died and became trapped in ice at about the same time had also been found in an Alpine glacier.

Again, tests showed the human, named Oetzi, had been frozen about 5,200 years ago.

Further evidence, including findings from a study of tree rings from Ireland and England, spanning a period of 7,000 years, all pointed to a major climate fluctuation 5,200 years ago.