The case for the Anthropocene Epoch is stronger than the case for the Holocene Epoch
The Anthropocene was recently dismissed as an official epoch by the International Union of Geological Sciences. However, the decision has sparked backlash. In a new article, two researchers challenge the logic behind the rejection, arguing that the same criteria could also disqualify the Holocene and several other epochs.
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Article in Earth’s Future as a response to the rejection of Anthropocene as a geological epoch by Alasdair Skelton, Professor of Geochemistry and Petrology and Kevin J. Noone, Professor Emeritus of Chemical Meteorology, both at Stockholm University.
The case for the Anthropocene Epoch is stronger than the case for the Holocene Epoch
Plain Language Summary
The proposal to name the Anthropocene as a formal geological epoch was recently rejected by the International Union of Geological Sciences. In this analysis we find that if a consistent scientific logic were applied to the Anthropocene and the other epochs in the Cenozoic Era, either several of the recognised epochs should be struck from the record, or that the Anthropocene should be granted epoch status.
Read the article at Earth's Future
Last updated: 2025-12-02
Source: Inês Gonçalves Varela Jakobsson