Explore how climates evolve across geologic time and shape today’s patterns.
This work blends geology and physical geography to explain the evolution of climates, from ancient ice ages to present conditions. It traces how long-term climate shifts arose, what caused ice ages, and how our understanding of climate problems has developed across time.
Readers will encounter a careful review of major theories, the evidence for and against them, and a clear discussion of how climatic distributions changed from non-zonal to the zonal patterns we see now. The book also delves into how heat is trapped in Earth's atmosphere, and how water vapor and carbon dioxide interact with solar energy to influence temperatures.
- How geological climates differ from modern patterns and what drives those changes.
- A survey of key theories that have been proposed to explain glacial epochs.
- Evidence of glaciation distributions across continents and latitudes.
- Fundamental ideas about heat-trapping mechanisms in the atmosphere.
Ideal for fans of climate history, geology, and earth science looking for a thoughtful, evidence-based look at climate evolution.