How are scientists able to find out the composition of Earths atmosphere throughout Earths history?
In: Chemistry
Ice cores in the Antarctic trap the Antarctic atmosphere from the past in tiny pores. They drill out the cores, carbon date the ice, and then very carefully sample the tiny pockets of air. You don’t get much, but from that air you can get a measure of the atmosphere, presuming that then as now the Antarctic atmosphere is mostly the same as the rest of the atmosphere.
Latest Answers