What are climate change records?

Climate change records are like a diary that Earth keeps to remember how hot or cold it was each year.

Imagine you have a jar full of marbles, some red, some blue. Every time it gets warmer than usual, you add a red marble. Every time it gets cooler, you add a blue one. Over many years, the number and color of marbles in the jar show whether Earth is getting warmer or cooler overall. That’s kind of how climate change records work, they are like those marbles, but instead of marbles, scientists use data from things like tree rings, ice cores, and even old weather reports.

Think about your favorite thermometer at home. It shows the temperature each day. Scientists have been using thermometers (and other tools) for hundreds of years to track how warm or cold Earth has been every year. These yearly notes are like climate change records, they help scientists see if Earth is slowly getting warmer, just like you might notice your soup gets hotter when it’s on the stove.

By looking at these records over a long time, we can tell if things are changing in ways that matter for our planet and all the living things on it.