1. Copyright 2011 Image Credit: psammophile

2. Copyright 2011 It would be hard to miss all the recent news about global climate change, unless maybe you were living on another planet

3. Copyright 2011 And even then, if you had a good view of Earth, from a satellite or another planet, you might notice that something was going on... Animation Credit: NASA

4. Copyright 2011 Photo Credits: Permafrost – Unite Us (University of Alaska); Seiner – Public Domain; Humboldt Squid – NOAA, public domain Thawing Permafrost Changes in Alaska’s Fisheries ¿Estoy en México?

5. Copyright 2011 Thousands of Walruses Crowding Onto Arctic Beaches Photos & Video: U.S. Geological Survey

6. Copyright 2011 What do scientists think is causing these changes?

7. Copyright 2011 INCREASED GREENHOUSE EFFECT Greenhouse gases: carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor Burning of fossil fuels Clearing of vegetation Increased amounts of sun’s heat trapped

8. Copyright 2011 Global Average Temperature and Carbon Dioxide Concentrations, 1880-2006 Global Temperatures CO 2 (Mauna Loa)

9. Copyright 2011 How much warming is from human activity and how much from Earth’s natural cycles? Were there other warm climate periods during Earth’s long history? How can scientists study Earth’s prehistoric climate patterns if there were no humans around to collect data? But there are still many questions to investigate

10. Copyright 2011 At most, our direct scientific measurements of temperature, carbon dioxide levels, etc., extend back only about 1½ to 2 centuries before the present! How can we go back in time to investigate prehistoric climate changes? Time for Climate Detectives!

11. Copyright 2011 OBJECTIVE Investigate how modern and ancient living organisms and their adaptations provide clues to Earth’s climate history and processes that have affected Earth’s past & present climate

12. Copyright 2011 OBJECTIVE Analyze fossil indicators to determine past climate trends and their changes in ancient atmosphere, ocean, and land- based systems.

13. Copyright 2011 OBJECTIVE Experience how different scientific disciplines (e.g., geology, biology, oceanography) are interconnected in conducting climate research

14. Copyright 2011 A fossil indicator is a type of proxy data, a special indirect clue about climate conditions when direct measurements are not available

15. Copyright 2011 And Earth’s prehistoric climate history, reconstructed from fossils and other proxy data, is called palaeoclimate