Little ice age

snowfall amount increased

Most of us are familiar with the conventional ice age that has taken place on our planet. However, today we are going to talk about the little ice age. It is not a global phenomenon but it is a period of low glaciation marked by an expansion of glaciers in the modern era. It happened between the 13th and 19th centuries, especially in France. They are one of the countries that suffered the most from this type of temperature drop. This cold climate brought some negative consequences and caused the human being to adapt to new environmental conditions.

Therefore, we are going to dedicate this article to tell you everything you need to know about the little ice age and the importance it had.

Little ice age

little ice age

It is a period of cold weather that occurred in Europe and North America from the year 1300 to the 1850s. It corresponds to a time when the temperatures were several minimums and the averages were lower than normal. In Europe this phenomenon was accompanied by crops, famines and natural disasters. Not only did it cause increased rainfall in the form of snow, but it also reduced the number of crops. It must be taken into account that the technology present in this environment was not the same as it is today. At present we have many more tools to be able to alleviate the negative conditions that are presented to us in these climatic situations.

The exact beginning of the little ice age is quite vague. It is difficult to know when the climate really begins to change and affect. We are talking about the climate being a compilation of all the data obtained over time in a region. For example, if we collect all the variables also such as temperature, amount of solar radiation, wind regime, etc. And we add it over time, we will have a climate. These characteristics fluctuate year after year and are not always stable. When we say that a climate is of a certain type, it is because most of the time it corresponds to values ​​of variables that fit this type.

However, temperatures are not always stable and each year they vary. Therefore, it is difficult to know well when it was the beginning of the little ice age. Given the difficulty of estimating these cold episodes, the limits of the small ice age vary between the studies that can be found about it.

Studies on the Little Ice Age

work in ice age

Studies by the Laboratory of Glaciology and Geophysics of the Environment of the University of Grenoble and of the Laboratory of Glaciology and Geophysics of the Environment of the Federal Polytechnic School of Zurich, suggest that the glacial extensions are due to a significant increase in precipitation, but to a significant drop in temperatures.

During these years, the advance of the glaciers was mainly due to the increase in more than 25% of snowfall in the coldest season. In winter it is normal for there to be precipitation in the form of snow in many places. However, in this case, these precipitations began to increase to such an extent that they existed in regions where it had not snowed before.

Since the end of the Little Ice Age, the retreat of the glaciers has been almost continuous. All glaciers have lost about a third of their total volume and the average thickness decreased by 30 centimeters per year during this period.

Causes

little ice age in humans

Let's see what are the possible causes of the little ice age. There is no scientific consensus on the dates and causes that could originate this ice age. The main causes may be due to a lower amount of solar radiation that falls on the earth's surface. This lower incidence of sun rays causes a cooling of the entire surface and a change in the dynamics of the atmosphere. In this way, precipitation in the form of snow occurs more frequently.

Others explain that the phenomenon of the little ice age is due to volcanic eruptions that have darkened the atmosphere a little more. In these cases we are talking about something similar to the above but with a different cause. It is not that less amount of solar radiation comes directly from the sun, but it is the darkening of the atmosphere that causes a reduction in solar radiation that affects the earth's surface. Some of the scientists who defend this theory affirm that between the years 1275 and 1300, which was when the little ice began, 4 volcanic eruptions in the space of fifty years would be responsible for this phenomenon since they all occurred at that time.

Volcanic dust reflects solar radiation in a sustainable way and reduces the total heat received by the earth's surface. The US National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) has developed a climate model to test the effects of repeated volcanic eruptions, over a period of fifty years. The cumulative effects of these volcanic eruptions on the climate approve of all the effects of repeated volcanic eruptions. All of these cumulative effects would give birth to the Little Ice Age. Refrigeration, sea ice expansion, changes in water circulation, and decreased heat transport to the Atlantic coast are more likely scenarios for the Little Ice Age.

Ice Age periods

However, it must be taken into account that the intensity of the small ice age is not comparable with other long and intense periods that our planet has had at the level of glaciation. The causes of the climatic phenomenon are not well known but after this event that when multicellular organisms have appeared. This means that at an evolutionary level, the ice age that took place on our planet 750 million years ago could be positive.

I hope that with this information you can learn more about the little ice age and its characteristics.


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