Major abrupt shifts occurred in the climate of ancient northern Europe, according to a new study from University of Helsinki, Finland. The research reports that sudden cold spells lasting hundreds of years took place in the middle of the warm Eemian climate period, about 120,000 years ago. These cold intervals saw a fall in temperature of a few degrees, and replacement of forests by tundra at the study site in northern Finland. The Eemian, which took place before the last Ice Age, had a climate generally warmer than present. This has made the Eemian important for climate scientists assessing the modern climate warming.