GeoLog

Lon Abbott

My path to a geology career began in the Colorado mountains during my youth. While growing up in Boulder I spent every moment I could climbing, kayaking, skiing, and backpacking in Colorado’s high country. My research focus ever since has been on how high areas become high and how geomorphic processes sculpt that high terrain and I'm currently based at the University of Colorado, Boulder. I love sharing my passion for geology with the public via talks, field trips, and popular geology books and articles. My goal is to deepen public understanding of and appreciation for the deep history of our planet and for the significance of geology in our everyday lives.

Using Milankovitch Cycles to create high-resolution astrochronologies

November 20, 2020
Using Milankovitch Cycles to create high-resolution astrochronologies
Image credit: Lon Abbott and Terri Cook

This year marks the 100th anniversary of Milutin Milankovitch’s first paper about Earth’s climate. Milankovitch argued that the amount of solar radiation Earth receives, and hence its climate, varies cyclically as its orbit changes due to gravitational tugs from the other planets. His climate theory fell into disrepute during the 1950’s but was rehabilitated in the 1970’s.   Today, many peopl ...[Read More]