The observation of lunar eclipses makes it possible to reconstruct the history of volcanic eruptions. Luis Acosta/AFP
DECRYPTION – The observations of lunar eclipses by monks of the High Middle Ages allow us to understand the volcanism of this period.
It’s a story of monks, moon and volcanoes. Or rather, how the observation of our satellite by religious people makes it possible to describe unknown volcanic eruptions in medieval times. This surprising approach is proposed by a French scientist, Sébastien Guillet, researcher at the Institute of Environmental Sciences at the University of Geneva in Switzerland.
He publishes his results in Nature . « It all started during my master’s thesis more than ten anshe explains. I had to work on the impact of volcanism on the climate and societies of the XIIeXIIIe centuries. But this task was particularly difficult because we did not know the exact date on which these eruptions occurred. Ice cores provide valuable information but their chronology is sometimes a little imprecise. I had to find another indicator, and I had the idea of looking towards the Moon and its eclipses. This work has thus made it possible to date more precisely…
This article is for subscribers only. You have 81% left to discover.
Want to read more?
Unlock all items immediately.
Already subscribed? Login