Introduction
Abrupt climate changes are events that have affected the Earth many times; it is not only possible but also likely that these will affect us in the future (Alley et al., 2002). While gradual climate changes allow time for those affected to adjust, rapid events often cause greater impact simply because of their rapidity. While we do not yet understand past rapid climate events enough to predict them, we can examine past data and use models to test our ideas about why they occur. One of the most useful ways to approach the data is to examine the occurrence, magnitude, timing, and distribution of these events, fitting together the pieces of a global puzzle.
Younger Dryas – prime example of abrupt climate change
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Peteet, D.M. (2009). Younger Dryas. In: Gornitz, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Paleoclimatology and Ancient Environments. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-4411-3_230
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