{"id":376187,"date":"2025-04-24T11:08:21","date_gmt":"2025-04-24T09:08:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=376187"},"modified":"2025-04-24T11:08:23","modified_gmt":"2025-04-24T09:08:23","slug":"new-study-plant-remains-embedded-in-a-modern-glacier-evidence-a-warmer-antarctica-1000-years-ago","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=376187","title":{"rendered":"New Study: Plant Remains Embedded in a Modern Glacier Evidence a Warmer Antarctica 1000 Years Ago"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From NoTrickZone<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By\u00a0Kenneth Richard<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leafy moss dated to the Medieval Warm Period (MWP) has been found embedded in Antarctic glacier ice that today is \u201cpermanently snow-covered\u201d with \u201cno evidence of meltwater.\u201d This affirms a warmer MWP and that \u201cthe summer melt during the MWP was greater than today.\u201d<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to a new study<\/a><\/strong>, moss samples with intact leaves and stems 10 to 13 mm long have been discovered embedded in glacier ice \u2013 the Boulder Clay Glacier (BCG) \u2013 in Antarctica\u2019s Victoria Land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The surface of this glacier is currently not undergoing melt. It is instead permanently snow-covered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is also noteworthy that under current climate conditions\u2026there is no evidence of meltwater on the BCG, and the surface of the glacier is permanently snow-covered.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The leafy moss samples have been dated to about 1,000 years ago, which is consistent with the timing of the Medieval Warm Period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c\u2026an unprecedented palaeo-erosion event occurred on the surface of an Anarctic glacier (northern Victoria Land, continental Antarctica) during the Medieval Warm Period (MWP) between 900 and 989 cal BP.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe period between 831 and 1140 cal BP is characterized by reduced sea ice in northern Victoria Land, which is consistent with the occurrence of a brief event of warmer conditions around 1000 cal BP\u2026\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The presence of thousand-year-old plant remains in a modern glacier strongly suggest the climate was warmer (and thus there was less glacier ice) during the Medieval Warm Period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFurther support for the occurrence of this short warming period was provided by the largest uplift event for the frost mound in the lake\u2026observed only a few hundred metres from borehole B1 and dated between 790 and 1070 cal BP. Therefore, the past frost mound uplift documented at BCG may indicate that the summer melt during the MWP was greater than today.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The warmth during the Medieval Warm Period has been suggested to be driven by ENSO, which is linked to solar activity. In other words, greenhouse gas concentrations played no identifiable role in this \u201chuge warm pulse event.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe MWP in Victoria Land has been reported to be mainly driven by the El Ni\u00f1o Southern Oscillation (ENSO), which is linked to changes in solar activity through non-linear dynamics.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Image Source:\u00a0Forte et al., 2025<\/a><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

According to a\u00a0new study, moss samples with intact leaves and stems 10 to 13 mm long have been discovered embedded in glacier ice \u2013 the Boulder Clay Glacier (BCG) \u2013 in Antarctica\u2019s Victoria Land.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":376191,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691834695,691834694,691819283,691818895],"class_list":["post-376187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-boulder-clay-glacier-bcg","tag-el-nino-southern-oscillation-enso-5","tag-medieval-warm-period","tag-sea-ice","fallback-thumbnail"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/image-557.png?fit=1024%2C1024&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-1zRx","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":376365,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=376365","url_meta":{"origin":376187,"position":0},"title":"Blame the Vikings! Moss found in East Antarctica lived in warmer summers a thousand years ago.","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"04\/25\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Around 1,000AD, a little delicate moss (just like the one above), lived in a spot in Antarctica which is now locked in snow and ice all year round, and considered hyper arid and perennially frozen. No one expected to find nodding thread-moss (Pohlia Nutans) on Boulder Clay Glacier.","rel":"","context":"In \"Antarctic moss\"","block_context":{"text":"Antarctic moss","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=antarctic-moss"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/02832_d7000_dsc9155_priestley_glacier.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/02832_d7000_dsc9155_priestley_glacier.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/02832_d7000_dsc9155_priestley_glacier.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/02832_d7000_dsc9155_priestley_glacier.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/02832_d7000_dsc9155_priestley_glacier.jpg?fit=1200%2C795&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":242997,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=242997","url_meta":{"origin":376187,"position":1},"title":"Study details timing of past glacier advances in Northern Antarctic Peninsula","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"02\/03\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"\"It's also possible that the climate conditions that led to glacier advances involved\u00a0wetter conditions\u00a0and would have had a negative impact on penguins, as we know they do today. Many of the recent abandoned penguin colonies are the same age as our youngest black moss.\"","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-107.png?fit=1200%2C759&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-107.png?fit=1200%2C759&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-107.png?fit=1200%2C759&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-107.png?fit=1200%2C759&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-107.png?fit=1200%2C759&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":283593,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=283593","url_meta":{"origin":376187,"position":2},"title":"Norwegian Archaeologists Are Salvaging Priceless Artifacts From Melting Glaciers\u2014 including a 3,000-year-old arrow.","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"10\/17\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Global warming happend many times in different time periods all the time, eg. The Roman Warm Period or The Medieval Warm Period . The Roman Warm Period, or Roman Climatic Optimum, was a period of unusually-warm weather in Europe and the North Atlantic that ran from\u00a0approximately 250 BC to AD\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"3000 years old\"","block_context":{"text":"3000 years old","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=3000-years-old"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/image-424.png?fit=1200%2C628&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/image-424.png?fit=1200%2C628&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/image-424.png?fit=1200%2C628&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/image-424.png?fit=1200%2C628&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/image-424.png?fit=1200%2C628&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":318547,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=318547","url_meta":{"origin":376187,"position":3},"title":"Antarctica Is Colder, Icier Now Than Any Time In 5000 Years. The Last Warm Period Was 1000 Years Ago.","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"04\/17\/2024","format":false,"excerpt":"More evidence emerges that Antarctica has undergone rapid glacier and sea ice expansion in recent centuries, in line with the long-term and recent Antarctic cooling trend.","rel":"","context":"In \"Antarctica\"","block_context":{"text":"Antarctica","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=antarctica"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0Antarctica-Landscape-T.Branson-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0Antarctica-Landscape-T.Branson-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0Antarctica-Landscape-T.Branson-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0Antarctica-Landscape-T.Branson-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/0Antarctica-Landscape-T.Branson-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":404332,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=404332","url_meta":{"origin":376187,"position":4},"title":"New Study: Modern Warmth Is Merely Part Of A Natural Cycle","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"09\/23\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Throughout the last 10,000 years there have globally been much warmer and more extensive iceless periods than observed in the modern era.","rel":"","context":"In \"Climate change\"","block_context":{"text":"Climate change","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=climate-change"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/AQPgrn3ZxLw-CC_stfvn7rJ47kfQxsjoV7PqjmMBp8bsFPEV6Vo0YWnQM5FkNZu9fKhNAdxluHF5h4eTZOw_Cp8py10ce6c03OUVI0zvCqEossoYJmBU9gdMdGWS1KxORMrLSrQz1LqWL-T2W5A9zR-luiNHaA.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/AQPgrn3ZxLw-CC_stfvn7rJ47kfQxsjoV7PqjmMBp8bsFPEV6Vo0YWnQM5FkNZu9fKhNAdxluHF5h4eTZOw_Cp8py10ce6c03OUVI0zvCqEossoYJmBU9gdMdGWS1KxORMrLSrQz1LqWL-T2W5A9zR-luiNHaA.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/AQPgrn3ZxLw-CC_stfvn7rJ47kfQxsjoV7PqjmMBp8bsFPEV6Vo0YWnQM5FkNZu9fKhNAdxluHF5h4eTZOw_Cp8py10ce6c03OUVI0zvCqEossoYJmBU9gdMdGWS1KxORMrLSrQz1LqWL-T2W5A9zR-luiNHaA.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/AQPgrn3ZxLw-CC_stfvn7rJ47kfQxsjoV7PqjmMBp8bsFPEV6Vo0YWnQM5FkNZu9fKhNAdxluHF5h4eTZOw_Cp8py10ce6c03OUVI0zvCqEossoYJmBU9gdMdGWS1KxORMrLSrQz1LqWL-T2W5A9zR-luiNHaA.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/AQPgrn3ZxLw-CC_stfvn7rJ47kfQxsjoV7PqjmMBp8bsFPEV6Vo0YWnQM5FkNZu9fKhNAdxluHF5h4eTZOw_Cp8py10ce6c03OUVI0zvCqEossoYJmBU9gdMdGWS1KxORMrLSrQz1LqWL-T2W5A9zR-luiNHaA.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":246335,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=246335","url_meta":{"origin":376187,"position":5},"title":"Kill dates of black mosses are archives of Antarctic glacier history","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"03\/01\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Natural climate variation is and always has been an ongoing process in Antarctica, just like everywhere else. Research suggests conditions similar to recent years prevailed about 850 years ago in at least one region.","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-25.png?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-25.png?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-25.png?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-25.png?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-25.png?fit=1200%2C900&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/376187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121246920"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=376187"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/376187\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":376193,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/376187\/revisions\/376193"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/376191"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=376187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=376187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=376187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}