A 2,000-year record of atmospheric methane concentrations has been extracted from a Peruvian ice core, providing the first historical global methane record from low latitudes. The research, published in *Nature*, indicates that methane levels in the equatorial regions were higher than previously estimated based on data from polar ice cores alone.
The study, published online on August 19, 2026, details the analysis of a Peruvian ice core spanning two millennia. Researchers utilized a four-box model to interpret the data, revealing a stronger methane signal at the equator than previously understood. This finding challenges existing reconstructions of global methane concentrations, which have largely relied on ice core data collected from polar regions.
The research team’s work, detailed in the article with doi:10.1038/s41586-026-10938-1, demonstrates the importance of including data from low-latitude regions to achieve a more accurate understanding of historical atmospheric methane levels. The team states that the new record provides a more comprehensive view of global methane dynamics over the past 2,000 years.
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