Citizen Scientists from 1400s to Today #science #tech #globalwarming #climatechange

I’m used to seeing climate data from satellites, ships, and

Shinto priests

weather stations – from Victorian to modern scientists – documenting global warming since the Industrial Revolution. But I hadn’t expected centuries of data from these sources:

In 1442, Shinto priests in Japan began keeping records of the freeze dates of a nearby lake, while in 1693 Finnish merchants started recording breakup dates on a local river. Together they create the oldest inland water ice records in human history and mark the first inklings of climate change.”

The data show climate changes pre and post industrial revolution, documenting the sharp increase in warming’s rate.

Our findings not only bolster what scientists have been saying for decades, but they also bring to the forefront the implications of reduced ice cover.”

Today’s citizen scientists join a distinguished group of observers.

Thanks to phys.org.

Filed under: Neat Science News Tagged: citizen scientist, climate change, Finland, global warming, Japan, recording ice break up melt