Planet Earth's climate had never been
so variable, alternating between hot and cold periods, according
to a new study analyzing the critical thresholds of last 66
million years led by Tommaso Alberti of Italy's National
Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) and published in
the Scientific Reports journal.
"Our work shows that climate tipping points do not show
themselves with the same dynamics in the Earth's different
geological periods of the Earth," said Alberti.
INGV President Fabio Florindo, a co-author of the study, said
that "the current period is particularly sensitive to 'small'
disturbances induced by human activity. "Our period is
characterized by more 'intermittent' behavior compared to warm
periods of the past, with faster transitions between different
climate states," he said.
"This variability makes it even more difficult to accurately
predict the evolution of our climate and requires special
attention in the study of tipping points."
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