Norse exploration — how climate shaped it

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A period of milder-than-usual North Atlantic climate, roughly 950–1250 CE, that reduced sea ice and lengthened sailing and growing seasons.

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Because it made Norse voyaging possible by removing obstacles like sea ice, but it did not by itself make anyone sail — human decisions and skill were still needed.

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Led Norse settlers from Iceland to Greenland around 985 CE after being exiled from Iceland for manslaughter.

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Erik the Red's son; sailed further west around 1000 CE and reached Vinland, drawn by timber and a milder climate.

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Norse name for the North American coast Leif Erikson reached around 1000 CE, likely near modern Newfoundland; valued for timber and wild grapes.

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Norway → Faroe Islands → Iceland (settled from 874 CE) → Greenland (settled from c.985 CE) → Vinland (reached c.1000 CE).

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Fjords offered good grazing land for livestock, but grain farming stayed marginal and there was almost no native timber.

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Milder climate than Greenland, wild grapes, and valuable timber — but too far away to supply reliably long-term.

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Greenland: grazing-friendly but marginal for farming, no timber. Vinland: richer in timber and crops, but distant and exposed to risk from the Skrælingjar.

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Explain how the content of two sources can be used to answer the inquiry question [6 marks]; needs specific detail from each source explicitly linked to the question.

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Identify a precise detail (e.g. mention of wild grapes) then explain what it shows about the inquiry question, rather than just summarising the source's topic.

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Greenland's climate was colder and more marginal even during the Medieval Warm Period, so its window for successful grain farming was far narrower than Norway's.