Marble gravestones could hold key to measuring climate change (includes video)

by Rich Bowden - Jul 20 2009, 06:08

It sounds very much like the opening to a Stephen King classic however Australian researchers have called on individuals, schools and community groups across Australia to visit their local graveyards in a bid to measure climate change through the weathering rate of old marble headstones.

Img: Marble-lead gravestone, Sydney, Aust. Credit: EarthTrek

The Geological Society of Australia claims that changes in rainfall patterns, which brings dust and pollutants show how much acid is contained in the rain and therefore can show how much pollution change in climate has occurred over time.The Society claims two methods can be used to measure the rate of weathering; one is comparing the weathering of the marble headstone over that of the lead used for the letters. The second is to compare the uniform thickness of the headstone where lead lettering wasn't used.Participants in the gloomily named Gravestone Project will be asked to visit their local graveyard and fix its position using a GPS, then send the information to theEarthTrek website.All relevant data including dates of death, whether they used lead lettering and weathering rates would be recorded on the site.President of the Geological Society of Australia, Professor Peter Cawood, said: “The terrific thing about EarthTrek is that it will engage the wider community in a whole range of exciting scientific research while also providing enormous people-power to greatly assist the scientists undertaking the research."He said similar projects worldwide will be used to help monitor a variety of environmental issues."EarthTrek projects across the globe will be focusing on critical research into key environmental issues such as climate change, pollution, the spread of noxious weeds and tracking endangered animals, just to name a few.""By actively engaging the wider community in their work, scientists involved in EarthTrek can substantially increase the amount of data they collect for their research, dramatically raise the profile of their research in the broader community, and provide younger people with a first-hand opportunity to experience the wide range of fascinating work that a career as an Earth Scientist offers,” he said.Want regular updates from The Tech Herald? Follow us on Twitter.Interested in a more interactive TTH? Join our Facebook Group.

Comment on this Story

Interested in a more interactive TTH? Join our Facebook Group
Want regular updates from The Tech Herald? Follow us on Twitter

Comment on this Story

Note our older Talkback system is still running below. We hope to import existing comments into the new system shortly. Guest posting is still allowed, however, you can now login with any number of social network accounts.

Talkback

Add your comment (no registration required)

page: 1

Brad ManzenbergerJul 20th, 2009 - 14:32:07

This is an interesting idea. However, there are some flaws in the reasoning.

Weather patterns alone do not account for the rate of deterioration of the headstones. Other variables such as the quarry the stone was taken from and the quality of the stone to begin with also contribute. Years of being scraped by lawn mowers can also contribute.

In six years of cleaning and repairing 100+ year old headstones I have seen stones standing next to each other that seem to be exactly the same but have weathered very differently.

Also, other things such as chemicals used to kill weeds around headstones can cause the stone to deteriorate over time and have nothing to do with the climate.

Brad Manzenberger, Owner
Stone Revival Cemetery Restoration, Inc.

Report this comment

page: 1

Add your comment (no registration required)

Science

Marble gravestones could hold key to measuring climate change (includes video)

Comment on this Story

Talkback

Latest

Latest Articles on Monsters&Critics

In The Tech Herald

Site

The Fine Print