science π³ Wyoming fossils show ancient forest struggles with warming
Fifty-six million years ago, Earth's forests experienced a major tipping point during intense greenhouse warming. In southern Wyoming, forests lost 60% of their canopy during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM). This dramatic change was linked to global temperatures rising by up to 11 degrees Fahrenheit. The PETM serves as a natural parallel to today's warming, despite human emissions being much faster. Scientists will continue using fossil evidence to understand planetary thresholds.