Dataset of Phanerozoic continental climate and Köppen-Geiger climate classes.

This article describes a suite of global climate model output files that provide continental climatic conditions (monthly temperatures, precipitation, evaporation, precipitation minus evaporation balance, runoff) together with the calculated Köppen-Geiger climate classes and topography, for 28 evenly spaced time slices through the Phanerozoic (Cambrian to Quaternary, 540 Ma to 0 Ma). Climatic variables were simulated with the Fast Ocean Atmosphere Model (FOAM), using a recent set of open-access continental reconstructions with paleotopography and recent atmospheric CO and solar luminosity estimates. FOAM is a general circulation model frequently used in paleoclimate studies, especially in the Palaeozoic.

Quantitative comparison of geological data and model simulations constrains early Cambrian geography and climate.

Marine ecosystems with a diverse range of animal groups became established during the early Cambrian (~541 to ~509 Ma). However, Earth's environmental parameters and palaeogeography in this interval of major macro-evolutionary change remain poorly constrained. Here, we test contrasting hypotheses of continental configuration and climate that have profound implications for interpreting Cambrian environmental proxies.