Tree ring width data from Backbone State Park in Iowa provides a 250-year climate proxy record. The dataset covers the period from 220 to 30 calendar years before present, compiled by NOAA NCEI. This archived study is part of the World Data Service for Paleoclimatology and was last updated in 1980.
Use Cases
- Reconstruct historical temperature or precipitation anomalies from annual tree ring width measurements.
- Calibrate climate proxy models by comparing the ring width chronology with known historical climate events.
- Analyze growth patterns and environmental stress events recorded in the tree ring time series.
- Validate regional climate model simulations for the pre-industrial period using this proxy data.
Strengths
- 250-year continuous chronology from 220 to 30 BC.
- Data is archived and curated by NOAA's authoritative World Data Service for Paleoclimatology.
Limitations
- Dataset is temporally stale, last updated in 1980.
- Geographic coverage is limited to a single site in Iowa.
- Sample size and replication level of underlying tree cores is unknown.
Provenance
- Source
- NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), World Data Service (WDS) for Paleoclimatology.
- Collection Method
- Tree ring analysis (dendrochronology).
- Time Range
- 220 to -30 calendar years before present (BP).
- Freshness
- null
- Geography
- Backbone State Park, Iowa, United States Of America.