Summary and Future Scope

Abstract

This chapter provides a summary of Chaps. 1, 2, 3, and 4 and future scope in palaeoclimate studies using lake sediments. The primary aim of palaeoclimate studies is to understand past climatic conditions and their forcing factors. The case studies discussed in previous chapters revealed that the non-linear response and non-stationarity of proxy behaviour pose limitation to the utilization of lake sediments for climate studies. Therefore, a multidimensional framework includes (i) modern approach (i.e., geological and geomorphological map** of the region, sequential field sampling); (ii) spatial and temporal calibration of proxies in various environmental settings; (iii) proxy data mining using advanced understanding of various statistical tools (e.g., principal component analysis – PCA, end-member mixing analysis – EMMA, spectral analysis, transfer function, etc.) and software (MATLAB, R, ArcGIS, etc.); and (iv) validation of climate model using proxy data. These methodological frameworks should always be considered while working with the lake sediments, as these provide a detailed understanding of modern and past climatic condition and their forcing factors, which further contribute to the prediction of future climatic conditions under different scenarios.