Palynology is the science that studies coeval & fossil palynomorphs, including pollen, spores, dinoflagellate cysts, acritarchs, chitinozoans and scolecodonts, together with particulate organic matter (POM) & kerogen found in sedimentary rocks and sediments.

A term palynology was introduced by Hyde & Williams around 1944, following correspondence sustaining a Swedish geologist Antevs, around a pages of the Pollen Analysis Circular (one of the number one journals devoted to pollen analysis, & by Paul Sears in Northward United states). Hyde & Williams chose palynology on the basis of the Greek words paluno meaning to sprinkle, & picket meaning dust (& so similar to the Latin word pollen).

Palynology is an interdisiplinary science, & occurs as branch of earth science (geology or geological science) & biological science (biology), particularly plant science (botany). Stratigraphical palynology is a branch of Palaeontology and micropalaeontology which studies fossil palynomorphs from a Holocene to Precambrian.

Methods of study
Palynomorphs (unremarkably between Five & 500 micrometres in size) come extracted from either rocks & deposit physically, by damp sieving, typically when supersonic coarse of action, & chemically, by applying chemical digestion to dislodge a non-organic fraction (e.g. applying hydrochloric acid (HCl) is used to drink carbonate minerals, and hydrofluoric acid (HF) is used to weaken silicate minerals within suitable fume closet in specialist laboratories).

Samples come so mounted in microscope slides and examined utilizing lightly microscopy or scanning electron microscopy.

Palynology utilizes numbers of techniques from either more related fields like geology, botany, paleontology, archaeology, pedology, and geography.

Applications
Palynology is utilized for the diverse range of applications, related to numerous scientific disciplines.

Biostratigraphy and geochronology. Geologists utilize palynological studies within biostratigraphy to correlate strata and determine the relative age of the given bed, horizon, formation or even stratigraphical sequence. Palaeoecology and climate change. Palynology may be utilized to reconstruct retiring vegetation (land plants) and marine and freshwater phytoplankton communities, and so infer retiring environmental (palaeoenvironmental) and palaeoclimatic conditions. Organic palynofacies studies, which examine the preservation of the particulate organic matter & palynomorphs provides principles on the depositional environment of deposit & depositional palaeoenvironments of sedimentary rocks. Geothermal alteration studies examine the colour of palynomorphs extracted from rocks to give a thermal alteration & maturation of sedimentary sequences, which provides estimates of maximal palaeotemperatures. Limnology studies. Freshwater palynomorphs & animal and plant fragments, including a prasinophytes and desmids (green algae) can be utilized to learn retiring flow of any stream levels & yearn term climate change. Taxonomy and evolutionary studies. Forensic palynology- the learn of pollen and other palynomorphs for evidence at the crime scene. Allergy studies. Studies of the geographic distribution & seasonal production of pollen, potty assist sufferers of allergic reaction like hay fever. Melissopalynology - the learn of pollen & spores obtained within honey.

Because a distribution of acritarchs, chitinozoans, dinoflagellate cysts, pollen and spores provides evidence of stratigraphical correlation through biostratigraphy and palaeoenvironmental reconstruction, one park & moneymaking application of palynology is inside oil and gas exploration.

Palynology too allows man of science to infer a climatical conditions from either a vegetation present around an vicinity thousands or millions of years ago. This occurs as fundamental a portion of search into climate change.