In 536 CE, a massive volcanic eruption dimmed the sun for 18 months. Chinese chronicles recorded snow in summer. Historians call it 'the worst year to be alive.' Norse Fimbulwinter myth—three winters with no summers—may preserve cultural memory of this real volcanic disaster
536 AD volcanic eruption caused Fimbulwinter, inspiring Ragnarok myth
Key facts
- In 536 CE, a massive volcanic eruption (possibly in Iceland) dimmed the sun for 18 months
- The sun gave off cold, lifeless light like the moon through ash
- Chinese chronicles recorded snow in summer, Ireland experienced famine
- Tree ring analysis shows drastically reduced growth in 536 and 540 CE in Denmark
- By 541 CE, the plague of Justinian emerged, killing millions
- Norse texts describe Fimbulwinter: three winters in a row with no summers
- Historians call 536 'the worst year to be alive'
- Gold was buried as ritual offerings in Sweden and Denmark during these years
- In 940 CE, the Eldgjá volcano eruption occurred, possibly inspiring the Voluspa poem
- Archaeologists believe Fimbulwinter may be cultural memory of real volcanic disaster
Sources
Volcanic winter of 536 - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
The volcanic winter of 536 was among the most severe and protracted episodes of climatic cooling in the Northern Hemisphere in the last two thousand years.
The worst year in human history? The mysterious events of 536 CEynetnews.com
Harvard medieval historian Michael McCormick calls 536 CE the worst year in history, when a massive volcanic eruption darkened skies over Europe ...
Silent witnesses - University of Cambridgecam.ac.uk
AD 536. A year of failed crops and of famine. A volcanic eruption had thrown a vast ash cloud into the stratosphere and according to accounts 'the sun became ...
Why Much of the World Went Dark for 18 Months in 536 A.D.history.com
In the year 536, much of the world went dark for a full 18 months, as a mysterious fog rolled over Europe, the Middle East and parts of Asia.
Eruption made 536 'the worst year to be alive' - NASA ADSui.adsabs.harvard.edu
Summer temperatures dropped 1.5°C to 2.5°C, initiating the coldest decade in the past 2300 years. Snow fell that summer in China; crops failed; people starved.
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