Why 1610 could be the year that changed the time – W Radio

Scientists believe that the arrival of Europeans to the Americas had an unprecedented impact on the planet and, therefore, this moment can be considered as the beginning of a new era.

Others, however, think that the industrial revolution or the first nuclear tests should mark the beginning of the Anthropocene.

And some believe that the exact date of a new era can only be determined thousands or millions of years later.
 But meanwhile, an international team of scientists is analyzing the evidence.

The result of these deliberations will be announced next year.

Looking for a “marker”

The arrival of Christopher Columbus to the Americas sparked an exchange of people, cultures and diseases.

Geologists divide the history of Earth into segments that reflect times of significant changes that may be the result of continental movements, the impact of a large asteroid or a profound change in climate.

Currently, we are formally in an era called the Holocene which began over 11,500 years ago after the end of the last Ice Age.

But now, scientists argue that humanity has changed the world dramatically.

In order to establish the beginning of this new phase geologists are looking for a clear signal that they describe as a “marker” that must be recorded in rocks, sediments or ice.

“We seek these markers, a real moment in time in which you can show a record of when changed throughout the Earth, “says Mark Maslin, a professor at University College London and co-author of the study.

” If you take into account the wonderful whole geological time scale, we have defined almost all limits that way. “

From here to there

The global trade involved a transfer of species from one side to another planet.

The study suggests that one of these markers located the start of the Anthropocene in 1610.

According to investigators, the arrival of Europeans in America a hundred years before the initiation of a global transformation large.

“Global trade after that time caused a transfer of species,” says Simon Lewis, co-author of the Univesity College London.

“Corn America Central began to be cultivated in southern Europe, Africa and China. South America potatoes grown in the UK, Europe and China. “

A. Corn was first grown in Central Southern Europe, Africa and China . Potatoes are grown in South America R. Kingdom, Europe and China. The species also traveled in the opposite direction. The wheat arrived in North A. and A. sugarcane South … a real mix of species worldwide
 

“The species also traveled in the opposite direction. The wheat arrived in North America and sugarcane in South America … a real mix of species worldwide “.

” We saw these species jump continents, implying a geological unprecedented impact sent to Earth on a new evolutionary path. “

The ancient pollen found in sediments It is a record of these changes, but the team believes that there is another marker is linked to deadly diseases who came to America from Europe.

“About 50 million people died (in the Americas) and Most of these people were farmers, “Lewis explains

.” And in these fields grew back the original vegetation. “

” tropical dry forests and savannas Nearly half the dry weight of a tree is carbon, therefore all vegetation was growing absorbed enough carbon from the atmosphere for a pronounced global concentration of carbon dioxide fall occurs and this can be seen in the records of ice cores “.

” This marks us exactly the start of the Anthropocene in 1610, when the point is recorded lowest CO2 records from ice cores that time. “

Testing nuclear

The nuclear tests in mid-twentieth century left also recorded in the clear Tierra signs of human impact on the planet.

Another possible start, the researchers say, could be 1964, when a ban put an end to nuclear testing in the 40s, 50s and early 60s.

The increase in radioactive carbon in the atmosphere while held testing was followed by a sharp drop after completion. This provides another marker that could be taken as a turning point.

However, while this signal is very accurate, radioactivity is not related to any other major change in that time, Maslin says.

(The study raises some) fascinating ideas. Certainly the group’s discuss

Jan Zalasiewicz, director of the working group on the Anthropocene

“A mid-60s there was a big change around the planet we call ‘great acceleration’, with an increasing population of 2% per year, unprecedented changes in agriculture and food production, but the score is not linked to it in any way “.

According to Jan Zalasiewicz, a researcher at the University of Leicester in the UK, who heads the working group on the Anthropocene, the study is interesting and raises some” exciting ideas “. “Certainly the group discuss them,” he said.

“It is a positive addition to the whole debate about the Anthropocene and the growing number of suggestions on when to start”.

“The 1610 proposal clearly reflects an important historical event, but needs more evidence “

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