Table 1 Average values of key human and environmental drivers for each studied time interval.
Geological Unit | Greenlandian Age | Northgrippian Age | Meghalayan Age | Pre-industrial Interval (informal) | Industrial interval (informal) | Anthropocene (proposed Epoch) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Time Interval (y before 2020 CE) | 11,720–8256 | 8256–4270 | 4270–70 | 350–170 | 170–70 | 70–present |
Interval span (y) | 3464 | 3986 | 4200 | 180 | 100 | 70 |
Global climate change (°C) | ~ +0.5 | ~ 0.0 | ~ −0.5 | ~ 0.0 | ~ +0.2 | ~ +0.9 |
Sea Level Rise (mm/y) | 15 | 3.6 | 0.3 | 0.15 | 0.75 | 2.4 |
Population growth rate (%/y) | 0.01 | 0.03 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 0.8 | 1.6 |
Primary energy source | Wood & human muscle | Wood & increasingly animal muscle | Wood, muscle, coal in cities | Wood, muscle, whale oil, coal, streams | Coal, oil, hydroelectric | Coal, oil, gas, nuclear, renewables |
Per capita energy consumption (GJ/y) | 6.2 | 7.1 | 8.3 | 18.4 | 27.2 | 61 |
Total interval energy (ZJ) | 0.12 | 0.34 | 14.2 | 2.9 | 4.9 | 22 |
Generalized human narrative | Primitive Agrarian Societies | Organized Agrarian Societies | Advanced Agrarian Societies | Empires, Nations, City States | Nations & Empires | UN |
GDP (Int’l $/Capita/y) | 96 | 109 | 144 | 170 | 679 | 5400 |
