GEOL 1020 Lecture 16: EARTH HIST LEC. 16
7 Dec 2017
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Document Summary
Early eocene epoch (50-55 ma) - height of global warming in all of cenozoic time (ie, in the last 66 million years) multiple hyperthermals. Eocene tapir teeth are adapted for browsing (not grazing) Modern primates naturally occur in mild temperate areas. Eocene-aged coal beds are thick and abundant in the arctic. Large tree stumps are found in the eocene arctic, often in coal seams. Belong to deciduous conifers (dawn redwood) that grow today in environments with poor drainage. Eocene arctic climate and environment: warmer and more humid, supporting forest and wetlands at high latitudes. Greenhouse effect the trapping of solar radiation by earth"s atmosphere (in a manner similar to the glass in a greenhouse) that warms the earth"s surface. These warm the atmosphere by trapping and absorbing infrared thermal radiation (heat) that is emitted by earth"s surface, the atmosphere, and clouds. Geologists use carbon isotopes as a proxy for measuring carbon-bearing greenhouse gases such as co2 and ch4.
