Little Ice Age

Quick Facts: Who was Little Ice Age?

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Little Ice Age

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A period of regional cooling, particularly pronounced in the North Atlantic region between the 16th and 19th centuries.

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Origins & Early Life

The Little Ice Age (LIA) was a period of regional cooling, particularly pronounced in the North Atlantic region. It was not a true ice age of global extent. The term was introduced into scientific literature by François E. Matthes in 1939. The period has been conventionally defined as extending from the 16th to the 19th centuries, but some experts prefer an alternative time-span from about 1300 to about 1850. The NASA Earth Observatory notes three particularly cold intervals.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

One began about 1650, another about 1770, and the last in 1850, all of which were separated by intervals of slight warming. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Third Assessment Report considered that the timing and the areas affected by the LIA suggested largely independent regional climate changes, rather than a globally synchronous increased glaciation. At most, there was modest cooling of the Northern Hemisphere during the period. Several causes have been proposed: cyclical lows in solar radiation, heightened volcanic activity, changes in the ocean circulation, variations in Earth's orbit and axial tilt (orbital forcing), inherent variability in global climate, and decreases in the human population (such as from the massacres by Genghis Khan, the Black Death and the epidemics emerging in the Americas upon European contact). The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Third Assessment Report (TAR) of 2001 described the areas that were affected: Evidence from mountain glaciers does suggest increased glaciation in a number of widely spread regions outside Europe prior to the twentieth century, including Alaska, New Zealand and Patagonia.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

However, the timing of maximum glacial advances in these regions differs considerably, suggesting that they may represent largely independent regional climate changes, not a globally-synchronous increased glaciation. Thus current evidence does not support globally synchronous periods of anomalous cold or warmth over this interval, and the conventional terms of "Little Ice Age" and "Medieval Warm Period" appear to have limited utility in describing trends in hemispheric or global mean temperature changes in past centuries. [Viewed] hemispherically, the "Little Ice Age" can only be considered as a modest cooling of the Northern Hemisphere during this period of less than 1°C relative to late twentieth century levels. when viewed together, the currently available reconstructions indicate generally greater variability in centennial time scale trends over the last 1 kyr than was apparent in the TAR. The result is a picture of relatively cool conditions in the seventeenth and early nineteenth centuries and warmth in the eleventh and early fifteenth centuries, but the warmest conditions are apparent in the twentieth century.

Chronological Milestones & Life Events

1. 1300: 1300 Milestone — The period has been conventionally defined as extending from the 16th to the 19th centuries, but some experts prefer an alternative time-span from about 1300 to about 1850.
2. 1650: 1650 Milestone — One began about 1650, another about 1770, and the last in 1850, all of which were separated by intervals of slight warming.
3. 2001: 2001 Milestone — The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Third Assessment Report (TAR) of 2001 described the areas that were affected: Evidence from mountain glaciers does suggest increased glaciation in a number of widely spread regions outside Europe prior to the twentieth century, including Alaska, New Zealand and Patagonia.

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: Little Ice Age

True or False: “The Little Ice Age was a globally synchronous period of increased glaciation across all continents.”

Answer (FALSE ❌): Current evidence suggests the cooling was largely independent and regional, with limited utility in describing global mean temperature changes.

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• Ada Yonath — Historical peer (Born in 1939) (1939): Pioneering crystallographer known for elucidating the structure and function of the ribosome.
• Alan Ayckbourn — Historical peer (Born in 1939) (1939): Prolific British playwright and director known for domestic farce and ensemble pieces.
• Franco of Cologne — Historical peer (Born in 1300) (1300): Pioneering music theorist who established note duration via written notation.
• Gebre Meskel Lalibela — Historical peer (Died in 1300) (1300): Founder of the monolithic rock-hewn churches of Lalibela, a powerful Zagwe king.
• Adalbert Gyrowetz — Historical peer (Died in 1850) (1850): Czech-Austrian composer known for symphonies and string quartets.
• Adam Oehlenschläger — Historical peer (Died in 1850) (1850): Pioneering Danish Romantic poet and playwright who shaped national literature.
• Dorgon — Historical peer (Died in 1650) (1650): Manchu prince and powerful regent who governed the early Qing Dynasty.
• James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose — Historical peer (Died in 1650) (1650): Scottish nobleman, soldier, and poet, famed for his military prowess in the 17th century.
• Adam Johann von Krusenstern — Historical peer (Born in 1770) (1770): Russian admiral and explorer, famed for leading the first Russian circumnavigation.
• Alexandre Brongniart — Historical peer (Born in 1770) (1770): Pioneering French scientist in chemistry, geology, and mineralogy.

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