Table of historic and prehistoric climate indicators


This table is a reference tool for rapidly locating Wikipedia articles on Historic and Prehistoric climate indicators of all types.
MethodTypeBasisInterpretInstrumentsBack To
Varve AnalysisGeologicalAnnual bands of seasonally differing particle size in glacial lake depositsSamples carry Proxies. Thicker bands = warmer, wetter weatherVisual and Microscopeca 13,000 yrs BP
DendroclimatologyBiologicalAnnual bands of seasonally differing woody growth tissue in treesThicker bands = warmer and/or wetter weather, although some studies found thinner trunks for higher temperaturesVisual and Microscopeca 10,000 yrs BP
Ice coresGeologicalAnnual layers of differing ice crystals in glaciers and ice capsSamples carry Proxies. Thicker bands = snowier weatherChemical and Mass Spectrometerca 800,000 yrs BP
SpeleothemsGeologicalLayers of seasonally differing stalagmite/stalactite deposits in limestone cavesSamples carry Proxies. Thicker bands = warmer, wetter surface weatherVisual and Microscopeca 500,000 yrs BP
Sun SpotsAstronomicalNumber of spots visible on the surface of the Sun over various periodsMore spots = warmer weather cycles Visual and Telescope1700 AD
Oxygen Isotope Analysis, see marine isotope stageGeochemical Climate ProxyRatio of Oxygen-18 to Oxygen-16 in calcite from deep sea sediment, and coral coresMore Oxygen-18 = colder climatic periodsMass Spectrometerca 542,000,000 yrs BP
Beryllium-10 AnalysisGeochemical Climate ProxyRatio of Beryllium-10 to daughter isotopes in dust from ice coresProduced in atmosphere by cosmic rays and absorbed into the hydrologic cycle. Level of Beryllium-10 has been shown to closely match recent solar activity measured by sun spotsMass Spectrometerca 80,000 yrs BP

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