Climate: lessons from the latest global warming

By analysing sediments dating back to the global warming that happened 56 million years ago, a team from the University of Geneva is taking a new look at our climate future. PETM was marked by an increase in the seasonality and intensity of rainfall. This increased the mobility of river channels - the deepest areas of a river - and resulted in the transport of large quantities of fluvial clays deposited on adjacent alluvial plains to the deep ocean. Lucas Vimpere PETM was marked by an increase in the seasonality and intensity of rainfall. This increased the mobility of river channels - the deepest areas of a river - and resulted in the transport of large quantities of fluvial clays deposited on adjacent alluvial plains to the deep ocean. Lucas Vimpere 56 million years ago, the Earth experienced one of the largest and most rapid climate warming events in its history: the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM), which has similarities to current and future warming. This episode saw global temperatures rise by 5-8°C.