an overall view
Throughout the Palaeozoic, Britian endured many different types of climate, from glaciers to deserts to tropical seas, here is a short evaulation of the period.
England and Wales at the beginning of the Cambrian were some 60 degrees south of the equator near to the South Pole. Scotland, seperate from England and Wales, was on the other side of the newly forming Iapetus Ocean, about 20 degrees South of the equator. However, both climates of the seperate areas formed part of warm, shallow seas from marine life found in the geology, differentiated by only a variation in the types of fauna.
The temperatures in the Cambrian started out to be relatively warm with relatively high sea levels and continued to be so until the Ordovician when a large glaciation occured resulting in a mass extinction of life. This also caused a significant fall in sea level as water became frozen on the land, and towards the end of the era saw a huge fall in temperatures correlating with the glaciation. England and Wales at this point were moving up to about 30 degrees south of the equator to meet Scotland as subduction zones on either end of the Iapetus were formed, until the late Ordovician when the Grampian orogeny occured, making Britain into one landmass.
This period saw much volcanicity in England and Wales due to the subduction zone, and high grade metamorphism in Scotland with some continental shallow water sediments in Scotland as well, and continued into the Siluiran were the last bits of marine sedimentation from the Iapetus Ocean were deposited. Temperatures in the Silurian slowly recovered to be relatively warm, and as the glacial period from the Ordovician ended sea levels began to rise again. As the Grampian and Caledonian orogenys occured around this time, it meant that much of the terrestrial deposition of Britian would now reflect the increased erosion, so towards the end of the period there started to be deposition of sands that would create what we know today as Old Red Sandstone, and hail in a new period, the Devonian.
England and Wales at the beginning of the Cambrian were some 60 degrees south of the equator near to the South Pole. Scotland, seperate from England and Wales, was on the other side of the newly forming Iapetus Ocean, about 20 degrees South of the equator. However, both climates of the seperate areas formed part of warm, shallow seas from marine life found in the geology, differentiated by only a variation in the types of fauna.
The temperatures in the Cambrian started out to be relatively warm with relatively high sea levels and continued to be so until the Ordovician when a large glaciation occured resulting in a mass extinction of life. This also caused a significant fall in sea level as water became frozen on the land, and towards the end of the era saw a huge fall in temperatures correlating with the glaciation. England and Wales at this point were moving up to about 30 degrees south of the equator to meet Scotland as subduction zones on either end of the Iapetus were formed, until the late Ordovician when the Grampian orogeny occured, making Britain into one landmass.
This period saw much volcanicity in England and Wales due to the subduction zone, and high grade metamorphism in Scotland with some continental shallow water sediments in Scotland as well, and continued into the Siluiran were the last bits of marine sedimentation from the Iapetus Ocean were deposited. Temperatures in the Silurian slowly recovered to be relatively warm, and as the glacial period from the Ordovician ended sea levels began to rise again. As the Grampian and Caledonian orogenys occured around this time, it meant that much of the terrestrial deposition of Britian would now reflect the increased erosion, so towards the end of the period there started to be deposition of sands that would create what we know today as Old Red Sandstone, and hail in a new period, the Devonian.
Britian now being about 10-15 degrees south of the equator and part of a time of hightened erosion with still relatively warm temperatures, a dry, arid climate developed were Old Red Sandstone was deposited. Sea levels at this time had dropped due to the compression of the two continents colliding, but there was still signs of flash floods caused by heavy rainfall depositing conglomerates with the sandstones. Scotland at this time was particularly volcanic as there was significant extension of the continents after the previous collision. This extension lowered the level of the land so much that the Rheic sea that surrounded the area at that point flooded Britain, creating a new climate and a new period, the Carboniferous.
The Early Carboniferous saw Britain become part of a large, warm tropical sea where many limestones were created, with some further volcanicity in Scotland over this time where basaltic lavas flowed in great thicknesses. As the Carboniferous continued, temperatures and sea levels dropped as a glacial period begun, but as Britian was near the equator it formed part of lush rainforests and areas of swamps, later creating the fossil fuels we use today. At the end of the Carboniferous there was a new orogenic event, the Variscan Orogeny, which again dramatically altered the climate of Britain and heralded in the Permian.
As the Variscan Orogeny occurred, it indicated the birth of the supercontinent of Pangea, were sea levels were recorded to be the lowest yet and even though temperatures were relatively low and still recovering from the Carboniferious glaciation, Britain had a hot, arid climate. With desert-like conditions see in the Death Valley today, Britain had large deserts of sands (that would later create the New Red Sandstone) as it was approximately 20-25 degrees north of the equator.
As the Permian continued, an increase in both sea levels and temperatures to some of the highest the planet has seen since the Cambrian, part of Britian became flooded as part of the Zechstein Sea, where not only dolomite limestones were deposited, but also huge quantities of evaporite deposits indicated that the sea must have been completely evaporated, then been replenished again to deposit more evaporites in a hyper-saline sea. Climatic conditions during the Permian were so very extreme that life had trouble adaption to these new conditions and at the end of the Permian, indeed the end of the Palaeozoic, the greatest mass extinction known occured wiping out approximately 95% of all species.
The Early Carboniferous saw Britain become part of a large, warm tropical sea where many limestones were created, with some further volcanicity in Scotland over this time where basaltic lavas flowed in great thicknesses. As the Carboniferous continued, temperatures and sea levels dropped as a glacial period begun, but as Britian was near the equator it formed part of lush rainforests and areas of swamps, later creating the fossil fuels we use today. At the end of the Carboniferous there was a new orogenic event, the Variscan Orogeny, which again dramatically altered the climate of Britain and heralded in the Permian.
As the Variscan Orogeny occurred, it indicated the birth of the supercontinent of Pangea, were sea levels were recorded to be the lowest yet and even though temperatures were relatively low and still recovering from the Carboniferious glaciation, Britain had a hot, arid climate. With desert-like conditions see in the Death Valley today, Britain had large deserts of sands (that would later create the New Red Sandstone) as it was approximately 20-25 degrees north of the equator.
As the Permian continued, an increase in both sea levels and temperatures to some of the highest the planet has seen since the Cambrian, part of Britian became flooded as part of the Zechstein Sea, where not only dolomite limestones were deposited, but also huge quantities of evaporite deposits indicated that the sea must have been completely evaporated, then been replenished again to deposit more evaporites in a hyper-saline sea. Climatic conditions during the Permian were so very extreme that life had trouble adaption to these new conditions and at the end of the Permian, indeed the end of the Palaeozoic, the greatest mass extinction known occured wiping out approximately 95% of all species.