Climate forcing data provides information about the way volcanic eruptions, solar variability, trace gases and aerosols, Milankovitch orbital variations, and other factors can affect the climate. These variables, or drivers, contribute to climatic cooling and warming by changing the way energy is distributed within the atmosphere. Aerosol particles produced by volcanic eruptions can cool the climate by reflecting sunlight back into space, while greenhouse gases warm it by absorbing heat energy. Changes in solar intensity affect the amount of energy the Earth receives, and changes in the Earth's orbit around the sun affect the intensity of the seasons.
Accessing Data at the World Data Service for Paleoclimatology
Search Climate Forcing Data
Search through climate forcing studies by investigator, title, location name, parameters, and latitude/longitude bounds.
NCEI Paleo Web Service
Use the NCEI Paleo Web Service to access climate forcing reconstruction study metadata records.
Browse Climate Forcing Datasets
Contributing Data
To contribute to the climate forcing archive, review our instructions for contributing data to determine if your project or collection fits NCEI criteria. Prospective data providers can email paleo@noaa.gov to submit data and study description information.
Other Resources
Additional climate forcing data and information sources:
