Mark Clementz, a professor in the University of Wyoming Department of Geology and Geophysics, and colleagues have produced a compelling study that shows that an increase in volcanic activity in the Andes in the Late Miocene Epoch likely resulted in a cooling of Earth between 5.4 million and 7 million years ago. Their findings are in a new article, titled "Andean volcanism, ocean fertilization, marine ecosystem turnover, and global cooling in the Late Miocene," published in Communications Earth & Environment.