What will the climate on the earth look like after the emergence of the Little Ice Age?

The Ice Age has been more than 10,000 years, but the Little Ice Age is not far away from us, because there was a Little Ice Age in the Ming and Qing Dynasties hundreds of years ago. The event lasted about 220 years from 1550 to 1770 and ended at the beginning of19th century. According to some theories, it may happen in the next few decades!

Why did the Ice Age and the Little Ice Age appear on the earth?

Ice age, also known as the Great Ice Age, refers to ten periods when the earth's long-term low temperature caused the surface to be covered by most continental glaciers. These warm periods are called interglacial periods, and we are currently in the interglacial period of Quaternary Glacier Period. This warm period began 1.4 million years ago, and according to the previous interglacial period, it lasted about 20,000-40,000 years. So, theoretically, we're just passing by.

Why did the Great Ice Age happen?

This is mainly related to the following points: first, atmospheric composition, and second, plate movement. Let's make a brief analysis!

How did the atmospheric composition affect the ice age?

The contribution of the atmosphere to the earth's temperature has an appropriate greenhouse effect, and the proportion of carbon dioxide is the key to heat preservation. It doesn't mean that the role of carbon dioxide is all negative. In a proper proportion, it can ensure that the earth is in a warm period. However, if plants develop vigorously, it will lead to the solidification of carbon dioxide in the air in plants, which will lead to the reduction of the greenhouse effect of the earth's atmosphere, and the earth will approach cold, resulting in an ice age.

Carboniferous rainforest

plate movement

This may be easier to understand. The earthen dish is just like playing mahjong, and the temperature will be different. Indeed, because the continental plate movement prevented the ocean currents from the equatorial region from being transported to the poles, it may lead to the middle and high latitudes being covered by large ice sheets, which will reflect more sunlight back into space and form an irreversible ice age.

How did the Little Ice Age occur during the interglacial period?

This factor is related to the changes of atmospheric composition and ocean currents mentioned above, but these are difficult to occur in such a short time during the interglacial period, so the interglacial period may be related to the decrease of sunspot activity, the decrease of solar output, and the periodic change of the spatial position of the earth around the sun (Milankovic cycle). Of course, it may also be that volcanic eruption caused a large number of dust to form aerosols to cover the atmosphere, which led to the reduction of radiation reaching the ground.

Spectacular volcanic eruption seen in space

For example, after the eruption of Dina volcano in Hennape in 1600 and the eruption of Tambora volcano in18/5, South America had a great influence on the winter of that year. This climate continued to affect the summer of the following year, and then gradually disappeared with the slow subsidence in the following years, so volcanic eruption was also a big factor.

What would humans do if there were a little ice age?

In fact, the average temperature of the earth dropped less than 1℃ during the Little Ice Age, but this 1℃ had a far-reaching impact. Why? Because the earth has a balanced system of atmosphere and ocean current circulation, the change of 1℃ means the increase of extreme low temperature weather and the expansion of polar ice sheets to low latitudes! How big the impact is, just refer to the early records!

It is not uncommon for Guangzhou to have heavy snow during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, but it hasn't snowed in Guangzhou since the 1930s! We just know now that there is little snow at such a low latitude in Guangzhou, let alone heavy snow! Then it means that the winter near the Tropic of Cancer begins to get cold, spring comes late, summer is short, autumn ends in a hurry, and it is another long winter! Life is hard in the Central Plains and Northeast China. Summer can even be too short to grow rice, only wheat.

How should humans face the low temperature environment?

Even if the modern earth is still a civilization dominated by agriculture, to put it bluntly, it depends on the weather to eat! The drop in temperature will seriously affect the grain output, so it can be considered that a grain crisis will inevitably occur, and the net grain importer will more than double the current proportion, so the international grain market will skyrocket, and even the rich will not be able to buy food (the Little Ice Age affected the middle and high latitudes, but the low latitudes and the equator had little effect).

Potato land

Greenhouse agriculture must be considered, and the staple food has changed from the current grain (long cycle and high sunshine requirement) to other crops in Gramineae, such as corn, potatoes and other potato crops. After the emergence of alternative grains, it may not affect the problem of food and clothing, but it may change the eating habits of some people forever, because according to experience, this little ice age will last at least a hundred years!

Will the earth enter the ice age?

Among several conditions that caused the Little Ice Age, the only one that would happen suddenly was volcanic eruption, and the Yellowstone volcano in the United States was one of the most uncertain factors. It has erupted three times in the past two million years, with an interval of more than 600,000 years, and now it is in a new eruption cycle. So if Yellowstone volcano erupts, we will face not global warming, but the Little Ice Age!

How to take the initiative to deal with the Little Ice Age?

Of course, the first priority of volcanic eruption is not to deal with the Little Ice Age, but how to rescue it is not considered in this paper! We already know how the Little Ice Age happened, so we know how to take the initiative to deal with it, such as increasing the solar absorption efficiency of the earth or increasing the proportion of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. To put it simply, we are now using fossil fuels for special purposes, and strive to increase the greenhouse effect by about 1℃ in a few decades!

Coincidentally, since the industrial revolution, human activities have caused the average temperature of the earth to rise by 1. 15℃, which is more interesting. Maybe we are avoiding a little ice age? That's not true. After all, the influence of human beings on the earth's environment is real, and the average temperature of the earth is indeed rising, because the ocean is honest, and the bleaching of corals tells us that we may not be avoiding the Little Ice Age, but may avoid the Great Ice Age in the future.