MU Scientist Finds Late Cretaceous Period Was Likely Ice-free
For years, scientists have thought that a continental ice sheet formed during the Late Cretaceous Period more than 90 million years ago when the climate was much warmer than it is today. Now, a University of Missouri researcher has found evidence suggesting that no ice sheet formed at this time. This finding could help environmentalists and scientists predict what the earths climate will be as carbon dioxide levels continue to rise. Read more
Fifty-five million years ago, the Earth was ice-less. Winters were balmy. Palm trees flourished all the way to the poles. As evidenced by fossils, crocodiles and broad-leaved, water-loving plants existed north of the Arctic Circle. This world had warmer oceans, featuring deep ocean temperatures 12 degrees Celsius higher than now. For any climate scientist who enjoys stretching the limits of current theory by imagining ancient worlds, the ever-warm polar regions of the mid-Cretaceous have long presented a paradox. Read more
One hundred million years ago, Earth experienced its first great peak in biodiversity. Flowers emerged and with them pollinators, dinosaurs towered over newly evolved mammals and marsupials, the steaming jungles were teeming with newly arrived ants and termites, and the oceans were filled with gigantic, air-breathing reptiles. This was life during the Cretaceous period, Earth between two great extinctions. Read more