Evidence for Extreme Climatic Warmth from Late Cretaceous Arctic Vertebrates

A Late Cretaceous (92 to 86 million years ago) vertebrate assemblage from the high Canadian Arctic (Axel Heiberg Island) implies that polar climates were warm (mean annual temperature exceeding 14°C) rather than near freezing. The assemblage includes large (2.4 meters long) champsosaurs, which are e...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science
Main Authors: Tarduno, J. A., Brinkman, D. B., Renne, P. R., Cottrell, R. D., Scher, H., Castillo, P.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 1998
Subjects:
Arctic
Axel Heiberg Island
Heiberg
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.282.5397.2241
https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.282.5397.2241
Description
Summary:A Late Cretaceous (92 to 86 million years ago) vertebrate assemblage from the high Canadian Arctic (Axel Heiberg Island) implies that polar climates were warm (mean annual temperature exceeding 14°C) rather than near freezing. The assemblage includes large (2.4 meters long) champsosaurs, which are extinct crocodilelike reptiles. Magmatism at six large igneous provinces at this time suggests that volcanic carbon dioxide emissions helped cause the global warmth.

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